And Your Love Has Come Too Late
by teneraestnox
Summary: Sasuke and Naruto are having to deal with adjusting to a new school, but the year looks like it will be anything but boring. Relationships will come and go, but more importantly, what to do about these vampires? SasuNaru, ItaIno Discontinued.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: I hate writing these things, as I tend to ramble for an age about things that no one cares about. So let me just put a couple warnings up real quick. This story is not about some cool, involved plot. It's about relationship building. There will be a plot there, and some general plot-like elements, don't worry. It's not an aimless story. It's just not going to be some thing where there's going to be an epic showdown at the end of the story. I don't write that kind of stuff. I like reading about relationships, so that's what I tend to write about more. I do my best with the characters, but this is my first (serious) Naruto fanfic. I will be adjusting into the characters and working on their personalities for a couple chapters, I'm sure. I'll try to do my best! I hope you enjoy it. I wanted to write a High School story. My friends wanted a Vampire story. I compromised. :) It's so cliche.

* * *

**And Your Love Has Come Too Late**

* * *

High school was meant to be a time of change, of growing older, dealing with hormones and subject to relentless gossip. That was what it was meant to be. And for many, that's exactly what it was. No matter what sort of school they went to, public, private, boarding, it was all the same. There was the endless array of classes and friends, relationships and breakups. That's all that ever mattered to the general student populace.

For others, high school was an interminable hell they were unable to escape. That is, if they wanted to be part of civilized society. Which was exactly the reason that Uchiha Sasuke had abandoned civilized society for, oh? Two hundred years. Not that 'high school', per se, had been the exact reason that had wandered away from society. No, it was merely an embarrassing situation that he'd rather not recall for you at this specific juncture. After all, it still stung. Two hundred years wasn't long enough to erase his ire. And embarrassment.

But now? Now that he had been away from the world, wandering from place to place, taking his pleasures and amusement as it came to him, Sasuke was forced back into the real world. And it was all his rotten brother's fault. Satan curse him for having gotten stuck in eternity with family. They were harder to ignore than the nameless faces of most of the world. Besides which, it was very difficult to say no to Itachi. The man was forceful.

Staring at the building with distaste, Sasuke curled his lips. Itachi had better have a brilliant reason for rousing him out of centuries of losing himself in idle pleasures for... for _school_. A more brilliant reason than "I miss you", mind. Because Sasuke wasn't about to take that bullshit. Shouldering his bag, Sasuke dragged his feet towards the building. For now, he'd have to recall how to be a teenager. Despite his outward appearance, Sasuke hadn't been so young in.. a very long time. It was almost impossible to even recall the first time through. Sasuke had blocked those memories out long ago. No one should have to remember their human life once it was gone from them. That was the way he liked it, so that was the way he kept it.

Shuffling through the crowd of students moving into the dormitory, Sasuke glanced at the slip of paper Itachi had sent him. Apparently the bastard had filled out his information for him, gotten him accepted to this wretch of a school and expected him to attend. What a laugh. Sasuke's lips turned up in a dark smile. At the very least, he could stay a few days while contemplating the best way to murder Itachi for his audacity. Or make his life miserable. Sasuke would settle for either one.

It had been a long time since Sasuke had been around this many people. Much of his life of late had been spent in small towns and villages all over the world. He liked to travel. There were so many experiences out that and hardly enough time for them all. Even with eternity. If Sasuke didn't act quickly enough, the possibilities would pass him by. And he couldn't have that. Sasuke's life had gone rather meaningless after a couple centuries of immortality. With only Itachi there to annoy him, Sasuke had lost the will to live. That is, until he had gathered an affection for experience and for lust. Never doubt the power of pleasure to bring a soul back to life.

"Are you new?" A voice brought Sasuke out of his internal pondering. A head of bright pink hair greeted him atop a slender body and an overly friendly smile.

Sasuke scowled. "Hm," Was all he bothered to say, brushing past the girl. Don't get him wrong, ideas had crossed through his head. But it was too early to be staking a claim on the youth here. Itachi had given him.. rules. And they grated already. Why did he have to wait a whole day? The man was cruel.

..And Sasuke wasn't going to listen to him. Perhaps Itachi thought he could manipulate Sasuke as much as he pleased, but Sasuke was not going to stand for it. Smiling ferally, Sasuke turned around to find the pink haired girl still looking at him. "Come," He gestured, crooking a finger at her.

The girl adopted a wondering expression for a few moments before a blush graced her cheeks. But she came. Quite willingly.

* * *

It would seem that Sasuke was not the only new student at this school. Shifting awkwardly, Naruto grappled with the largest bag he had ever seen. It had all his stuff in it, and it was going to fall, with him along with it. Cringing, Naruto tried to regain his balance as he worked his way through the hallway. Students were milling around and greeting each other after a summer off. It was all very endearing, Naruto was sure, but right now he couldn't make his way through the crowd without causing a severe accident.

"Oh holy - " Naruto called out as some bloke bumped into him, upsetting his precarious balance as he had been swaying across the hallway side to side. Which was really the end for him and sent Naruto tumbling. "Fuck," Naruto grumbled once he had collided with the ground. It was so delightful, really, to get his first accident out of the way in the first ten minutes.

Oh, not to mention he'd made his first friend. Jumping up apologetically, Naruto rubbed the back of his neck and offered his other free hand to the girl he'd knocked into, apparently. "Sorry about that," Naruto gestured to his ungainly bag. "Can't control the thing, you know," He said, smiling in what he hoped was a friendly manner.

"T-that's okay," Came a quiet stutter.

"Eh?" Naruto said, not having quite heard her. After she hadn't took his hand, Naruto had felt awkward so he'd gone to get his bag up. And was now currently straining to hoist it on his back again. It was a wonder it had ever gone there to begin with. But then, he'd had help. Good old dad. Dropping him off at this new school so he and mum could go.. on an adventure? Naruto didn't even know. But he was feeling distinctly abandoned.

The girl, though. She was looking beet red. "I d-didn't meann t-to get in your way," She said putting a hand over her mouth nervously. Naruto couldn't help but feel sorry for her. Poor girl had the most awful stutter.

Shrugging, Naruto reached out and patted her shoulder. "S'alright," He winked at her. "I'm Uzumaki Naruto," He stuck his hand out again.

"Hyuuga Hinata," The girl said, devoid of all stutter. Naruto was so proud of her.

Grinning stupidly, Naruto looked around him. "Say, do you think you could help? I've just transferred here, and I'm trying to find my dorm," He said, looking a little lost. The place was fantastically huge. How was he supposed to make his way around without getting bloody lost?

"S-sure," Naruto inwardly winced. There was that stuttering again. She took the piece of paper he'd proferred to her with his room assignment on it. "You're near me," Hinata said, cheeks flushing dark red again. Naruto thought maybe she was ill. Or it was too hot for her in here with all the people milling around.

"Excellent," Naruto said trying to comfort her. So he took her hand and began leading her through the crowd. That is, until he tried to take them the completely wrong way and Hinata awkwardly attempted to steer him towards a set of stairs they needed to take. Naruto had the grace to look embarrassed, but all the same.

It wasn't until they had parted ways that Naruto was able to really take in his surroundings. With someone else there to talk to, it was easier to accept his new situation. But all alone. It was overwhelming. Especially now that he was facing his new room. Where he'd spend the next however many million months of his life. Grumbling, Naruto relinquished the demon bag from hell.

"Oh yeah," He stretched, feeling knots unkink from his back. Never again would he pack so many cups of ramen. They were a nightmare to transport.

Flopping down on the bed he claimed as his own, Naruto looked around his new space. It was pretty big for two people. But this was a fancy school, he wasn't really surprised. The only surprising bit was the fact that they even had roommates at all. Couldn't they each get their own room? Naruto wasn't particularly keen on sharing. Though, he was interested in meeting his new roommate. Maybe he could make a friend in this godforsaken place. Honestly, why on earth did his parents have to send him to the preppiest boarding school they could find? Naruto had never been smart enough for this kind of place. How he'd gotten in, he couldn't even fathom. His parents were scary sometimes.

Sitting up, Naruto glanced around. Two beds. Two desks. Two wardrobes. And a kitchen. Snickering, Naruto couldn't imagine cooking much in here. They had a cafeteria, the brochure told him. Brilliant, that.

Now, here's the question. Where's the bathroom? Blinking, Naruto stared about the room. No. No bathroom in here. Did they have... communal bathrooms? Shuddering, Naruto hopped to his feet. Oh, hell no. That was impossible. First roommates and now shared bathrooms. Why even bother calling this a place for the well-to-do. Might as well call it mediocre.

Pouting, Naruto left his room. He figured he should probably find the bathroom before the situation got dire. It wasn't too hard, but he'd taken a wrong turn once and had to ask for directions. ...Only to find the bathroom right there in his own hall. Excellent, Naruto. You are surely off to a good start.

Stepping into the men's bathroom, Naruto headed for the urinals. That is, until he heard a strange noise. "Eh?" Naruto said, looking around. It was vaguely awkward, considering he'd just unzipped his pants. But. You really didn't often hear noises like that coming from high school bathrooms. Or did you? Naruto stopped to ponder that for a moment.

And pretty soon he'd lost all track of what he was really doing as he thought about teenage sex. Being a male and all.

So basically, Naruto was taken completely by surprise when a door to a stall opened and a pink haired girl fell out unceremoniously. She looked flustered and her clothes were in an interesting state of disarray. Naruto couldn't help but stare. She was well cute. But there was something off about her, apart from her indecent state. Naruto wondered why her neck looked so swollen.

While they stared at each other in surprise, it barely occurred to Naruto that there was a _girl_ in the _boy's_ bathroom. That hit him about two seconds later. "Hey," Naruto started to say.

But this seemed to jolt her out of her stupor. "I'm sorry," She cried before running out.

Well. That had been odd. Just about to turn back to his business Naruto was stopped by another boy emerging from the same stall as the girl. Naruto's lips curled up into a smile. Oh. Well, just. Oh. _Now_ he understood.

The dark haired boy walked out in perfect composure, a stark contrast to the pink haired girl, poor thing. Naruto raised his hand and was about to say something when those eyes traveled over him. "I don't have time for you right now," The boy said in a deeper voice than Naruto would have expected. It made him shudder.

Face setting into anger, Naruto snorted. "Oh yeah, you seem like you're plenty occupied," Naruto shot back before whipping around to do his business. He wasn't shy. And he totally didn't care if the boy's eyes burned a hole in his back. Screw that. Naruto didn't like him. Look what he'd done to that girl. Did they even know each other? Naruto felt anger swell up in him. When he was done, he was about to give the boy a piece of his mind.

...Except he was gone. Naruto hadn't noticed that happened. Growling, Naruto zipped his pants back up, washed his hands, and stalked out of the bathroom. What a brilliant start of his first day. Oh, yeah. Falling over on top of some girl, meeting another cute girl in the bathroom, not to mention locking eyes with obviously the most frustrating person he had ever met. Never mind they'd exchanged two sentences. Naruto had a sixth sense about this type of thing. The boy was bad news. Naruto wouldn't bother trying to be friends with him.

Honestly, he wouldn't.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

* * *

Sometimes, promises were hard to keep.

Naruto walked back into his room after The Incident. He was so bothered by the brief encounter, that he didn't even take in his surroundings. Like, the fact that there were other people in his room. Instead he just flopped onto his bed and glared at the ceiling. Or he would have, except now was a brilliant time to discovery the canopy surrounding his bed. Well, fine. He'd just glare at that. Because honestly, who needed beds like that? Naruto couldn't imagine. Privacy was all well and good but.. there were only two beds in the room, who was that shy? Rich people certainly had odd habits at this school. Naruto couldn't even begin to figure them out.

"Ahem," Someone cleared their throat.

Which made Naruto shoot straight up in bed, wide eyes turning to take in the rest of the room. Oh, right. The other people that were here. Cheeks heating, Naruto rubbed at the back of his neck, a little embarrassed. "Hey," He mumbled.

There were two of them. So one must not belong to his room. One had vividly red hair and was glaring. The other had brown hair and looked amused. Naruto could tell you which one he'd prefer was his roommate, but that would be like playing favorites and no, no. He'd just keep that tidbit a secret.

"I should go," The brown haired one said.

Well, fuck. Naruto grimaced, huffed and turned away from the pair. "Don't let me interrupt, or anything," Naruto insisted flopping over onto his stomach and unzipped his bag, so he could rummage through it. "You can pretend I'm not here," He said, more to himself.

Snickering, the brown haired one looked at the boy splayed across his bed. "Nah, I've got to get settled in my own room. I was just greeting Gaara here. It's been ages and all," The boy was teasing. Even Naruto could tell that.

"Do not, Kiba," The low voice of the red haired boy came. At least, that's who Naruto assumed it was. Anyhow, he sounded dangerous. Naruto grimaced as he came across an open cup of instant ramen in his bag that had spilled. Could this day get any better? Oh, assuredly not.

Pulling away from his bag, Naruto sat up, folding his legs under him. "Gaara," He nodded at the red haired boy. "Kiba," He nodded at the brown haired boy. A smile lit up his face, just then. "I'm Uzumaki Naruto," He nodded once more, just for emphasis.

"Nice to meet you, Naruto," Kiba said, tilting his head in distinct amusement. "Try not to let this one get you down. He's a real pain in my ass," Kiba rolled his eyes before heading for the door. "Oh, and Gaara? About that thing. Don't worry, we've got it under our surveillance now," He said before disappearing from the room with a small click to the door.

"Eh?" Naruto blinked and turned his gaze back to Gaara. And flinched, because the boy was staring intently at him. "What?" Naruto rubbed at his face, wondering if he'd left something on there from lunch. When he was satisfied his face was clean, Naruto turned his attention back to more important matters. Like cryptic messages. "What was that about?" Naruto asked.

"Nothing," Gaara said, swinging his gaze away. The fascination had gone.

Snorting, Naruto shook his head. "Like hell I'm going to believe that. What are you watching? Can I help? I can be sneaky," Naruto insisted.

"No," Gaara said, as if he wasn't even listening. Which he probably wasn't. At some point when Naruto hadn't been paying strict attention, Gaara had gotten out a pair of headphones and was now blasting music into his ears.

Mouth almost dropping open in surprise, Naruto caught himself. What was with the surly people at this school? So far, only Hinata had been particularly nice to him. And that Kiba boy, but he was more amused than nice and Naruto got a strange vibe from him. Just like this Gaara that he had to now live with. And that black haired boy.

Why on earth did his parents hate him? Sending him to this awful school. Naruto didn't like it. There was no one here that really appealed to him. At least not yet. And having to live with a bastard? Not Naruto's idea of fun. At least at his last school he'd had friends of a kind. Dorky as they all were. That wasn't the point! The point was, Naruto hated this school. And he'd definitely never forgive his parents for dumping him here.

But now what to do? There wasn't any kind of orientation today or anything, that was tomorrow. And he didn't know anyone except Hinata. But where she lived was a mystery other than nearby. He wasn't tired yet. So. Naruto did the only thing he could really think to do. He made some instant ramen.

* * *

That had been refreshing. Sasuke had needed that. Especially if he was going to meet with his brother soon. It was always easier to take Itachi after just feeding. It made him slightly blissed out so he felt less like killing his older sibling. A shame, that, but necessary.

After having deposited his.. 'things', Sasuke walked through the halls of the school as if he knew exactly where he was going, despite being new. It wasn't that hard to find Itachi. Sasuke could sense his brother before he even entered the building. The man was powerful. Lips curling up distastefully, Sasuke paused at the doorway.

"Come in, if you're coming," His brother's voice called.

Oh, how he hated that voice. Keeping a cool exterior, Sasuke casually opened the door and leaned on the doorframe. "Itachi," He said lowly.

"Sasuke," Itachi's lips quirked upwards. "It has been too long, little brother," Itachi said slowly rising from his seat.

It was a little game they played. Pretending to be a happy family. Sasuke wasn't entirely convinced Itachi didn't actually believe it. But how could he? Itachi had taken Sasuke away from their family. Had.. had made him into _this_. There was an eternity of resentment between them and no room for a happy family.

"Not long enough," Sasuke said, pushing off the wall and stepping into the room properly. "Why did you call me here?" Might as well get to the point.

Sighing, Itachi spread his hands, as if in a dismissive gesture. "I missed you, little brother. Why would I need an ulterior motive?" He raised his eyebrows questioningly.

"I can smell your lie," Sasuke said, taking the seat in front of the desk Itachi had been sitting behind. Crossing his legs, Sasuke neatly folded his hands on his thigh and waited for Itachi to explain himself. It would happen eventually. He just needed to wait it out.

Lowering himself back into his seat, Itachi's smile never left his face. "That is not a lie," Was all he deigned to say at this point.

And so, the staring commenced. Sasuke hated this part worst of all. In which they'd wait for the other to crack and make unreasonable demands, leaving themselves with the upper hand. It was an annoyance. Mostly because Sasuke always caved first. He had better things to be doing than staring at his brother. But this time, with fresh blood coursing through his dead veins, Sasuke did not feel the need to move a muscle. They could spend hours like that, not even breathing.

Perhaps they would, at that.

After an interminable amount of time, Itachi let out a small sigh, his little smile returning to his lips. "I told you I missed you, little brother. You've changed. We should catch up," Itachi leaned forward, clasping his hands together over the desk, resting on his elbows.

"Why did you bring me here?" Sasuke asked again.

"We have a new blond student you might be interested in," Itachi raised his eyebrows. "I was only thinking of your well being," He nodded his head magnanimously.

"I've met him," Sasuke said dismissively. Not important enough. "What is happening?"

"Have you?" Itachi mused. "I like him; play nice," Itachi waved his hand and leaned back in his seat. "I've been teaching here for five years. It's almost time to move on, but first, there is a small problem to deal with," Itachi said, all business now.

Sasuke could have guessed that. Itachi only ever called him when there were troubling situations. And even then, it was not as if Itachi even needed Sasuke there. He just enjoyed being a pain. "And," Sasuke grit his teeth. Itachi enjoyed drawing conversations out too much for Sasuke's liking. He enjoyed his conversations short and to the point. That way, there was no need for wasted breath.

Looking as pleased as ever, Itachi didn't move a muscle. "And please enjoy yourself at my school," Itachi said serenely. It was a dismissal. And nothing had been learned.

Oh, oh Sasuke was not in a good mood. He needed to bite something. Anything. The first thing he set eyes on.

"Oh, and Sasuke?" The voice stopped him in his tracks. "Don't hurt the students, yes? I would hate for an accident to occur on my watch."

* * *

You see, earlier in the day Naruto had figured out the school's one big flaw in its design. And that was the separate bathrooms. Now that it was the dead of the night and Naruto had to _go_ and it was dark as hell and Naruto didn't know where he was going... It was a problem.

Wandering aimlessly now, Naruto couldn't even say what part of the building he was in. It was dark and cold and he had to pee, _right now_. If he could just even find the out of doors, that would work too. Naruto wasn't particularly picky. He just needed to relieve himself. In the worst way possible.

Since Naruto's mind was slightly occupied, he wasn't paying the best of attentions to where he was going. Except to check if any shadowy looking doorway was really a bathroom in disguise. So, he could possibly be forgiven for not noticing another person in the hallway and running smack into them.

Yes, Naruto could be forgiven. But the stranger probably would not ever be forgiven for pushing Naruto up against the wall. And attacking his neck with their mouth. "What - " Naruto said in a daze. There were lips on his neck, and if he were more awake, he'd properly process that. As it was, there was a tongue on his neck now. And -

"_What the hell are you doing_?" Naruto hissed and kneed the person in the stomach. As soon as he'd felt _teeth_ on his neck, Naruto had reacted. Oh no. Oh he wouldn't stand for that. "Fucking pervert," He grumbled stalking away.

* * *

That could have gone better. If Sasuke had been any thirstier, the boy wouldn't have gotten away at all. But as it was, he was still stuffed with the pink haired girl's blood. As disgusting as it was, it got the job done. Now, he was left to deal with a boy running off … into a girl's bathroom.

Had Sasuke been the conversational and friendly type, he would have happily warned the boy where he was. As Sasuke was not, he simply walked past. The knee had not been all that damaging. More surprising than anything. Usually when Sasuke started, he encountered little to no resistance. What little there was was easily quelled. This boy, though, should have been under his thrall. Sasuke had recognized him from their earlier encounters. And then Itachi's warnings.

It was fascinating. Like a puzzle piece to be worked out. Sasuke hadn't actually had a challenge in some time. Humans were too easy, too simple. Sasuke would bring this boy under his command, use him like a toy. Because no one, absolutely no one, said no to him.


	3. Chapter 3

* * *

**Chapter Three**

* * *

There comes a time in every young immortal's life when he must learn the consequences of his actions. There was nothing more that Sasuke hated in this world than those times.

The first day of lessons.

It had been a long time since Sasuke had even stepped near a school. He found them repulsive and full of mindless drones. No one ever thought for themselves in those places. Especially at _High School_. While having never really experienced it for himself, Sasuke had had enough second hand stories to know he never wanted to attend. And now, now thanks to his delightful older brother, Sasuke was stuck at a high class boarding school. Which meant he didn't even get the satisfaction of going home at night. This was his home. Such as it was.

At least it was well stocked with food. Sasuke could acknowledge that much at least as he walked down the corridors. It unsettled him being around people so young. The few times Sasuke ever sought out socialization in the past it had been with his own kind. After a certain point, humans had become too fleeting and too full of emotions for him to bear being around. Not to mention they were highly annoying.

The centuries hadn't really changed the human populace that much. Just their clothing. And perhaps the technology. Their personalities, however, were all the same. So simple, so easy to figure out. Sasuke could feel the heads turning as he walked down the hallway. Did they have to stare? It was impolite. Sasuke's lips quirked up in a smirk. Never mind how rude they were being, Sasuke would just mark them out as bait, each and every one of them. A year was a long time to spend in one place, after all. How Itachi managed, Sasuke couldn't say.

Slipping into the his first classroom, Sasuke strode towards the back and took a seat. This was tedious. He couldn't recall a more unpleasant time of his life. Breathing deeply, Sasuke shut his eyes and shut out the world. He would simply reminisce on more pleasant thoughts. Like ripping Itachi's heart out for his insolence in calling Sasuke here, back to the real world.

The plan had been working beautifully until a loud noise rent through his imaginings. "HEY, GIVE THAT BACK!" Sasuke grimaced and went back to pondering the satisfying sound of his bare hands ripping through Itachi's chest to grasp at his h - "I SAID, GIVE IT BACK!"

The voice was pouty and loud and utterly annoying. Cracking an eye open, Sasuke viewed the scene before him. Most of the students had filed into the classroom by now and were idly gossiping with each other. A brown haired boy was taunting a blond haired boy with his bag, keeping it out of the other's reach.

"What will you give me if I do?" The brown haired boy asked.

Sasuke couldn't have possibly cared less for the way this conversation was going, so he tuned it out. But what did catch his attention was the other boy. The blond one with the unruly hair. It was the boy from the other night. Well thank goodness for small favors. This would play perfectly into Sasuke's plan.

Smoothly rising from his seat, Sasuke walked towards the bickering pair. "Hey," He said, not raising his voice in the slightest. But there was a touch of command there, causing nearly everyone to look up at him. "Let's not be childish," Sasuke chided the brown haired kid and neatly grabbed the bag away from him. Holding it on the end of his finger, Sasuke offered it to the blond. "I believe this is yours," He said, allowing his lips to curl up slightly at the ends.

When the boy had taken his bag, Sasuke turned around smartly and walked back to his desk, leaving the classroom in silence.

* * *

"Bastard," Naruto said, punching Kiba in the arm. Holding securely onto his bag, Naruto glared at his new friends before stalking away. It had only been innocent teasing, really. After that first day, Naruto had gotten to know Gaara and Kiba a lot better in the intervening time between then and the first day of school. Well, at least, as much as anyone got to know Gaara. But Kiba! Was a right pain in Naruto's behind. The boy was constantly picking on him and as much as Naruto gave as good as he got, sometimes, there was a line. Like public humiliation in front of the whole classroom, not to mention the appropriation of the other's things.

And then, then that boy had saved him. The one from the bathroom stall. Naruto still couldn't get those eyes out of his head. Naruto hated him. He didn't seem like the type that would just casually intervene in this type of situation. That meant something was up. And Naruto was going to find out.

Finished sulking, Naruto took a seat next to the dark haired boy. "Uzumaki Naruto," He held out his hand.

Naruto watched as the other boy slowly opened his eyes and tilted his head a bit to take in Naruto and his outstretched hand. One moment Naruto was staring at him sitting in his seat, and the next, Naruto was suddenly much too close as the boy had stood up, taken his hand and leant over so he could breathe onto Naruto's ear. "Uchiha Sasuke," That same low voice spoke, making Naruto's mind go a little cloudy.

Not for long, mind you, as Naruto was on his guard for evil tricks. Yanking his hand away, Naruto punched him in the shoulder. "Mind your own personal space, bastard," Naruto grumbled and shifted to stare at the front of the room.

Who greeted people like that? Naruto just rolled his eyes and pulled out his things for class. It would start in a whole five minutes, but Naruto wasn't in the mood for socialization anymore. He could feel eyes on him. Coming from this... Sasuke next to him. Naruto huffed and started doodling. The boy could stare all he damned well pleased, Naruto wasn't going to turn his head. They were having a fight. A mental battle of wills, if you please.

Oh, Naruto was very much going to win this one. He had the strongest will in the world. Grinning to himself, Naruto looked around the rest of the classroom, careful not to take in his assaulter in his gaze. Everyone else looked fairly normal and friendly. They would certainly not molest his ear in public. Or steal his bag, Naruto narrowed his eyes at Kiba. And flung a pencil at him.

"Oi, Kiba," He called across the room. "When's lunch?"

"Three more hours," Gaara spoke from beside him.

"Eh?" Naruto said, expression faltering. Why did his parents hate him so much? This was a nightmare! Four more minutes before the first day of the worst year ever. Naruto sighed.

And then he encountered his pencil nearly stabbing him in the face, but luckily he dodged. Somehow. "You dropped that," Kiba called from across the room.

Making a face at him, Naruto rolled his eyes and turned around to find where his pencil had fallen on the ground. But it wasn't there. Raising his eyes, he found it being held out to him. By pale hands. They looked delicate. And like they belonged to a real bastard. Naruto glared at Sasuke and snatched back his pencil. "This doesn't mean I lost," Naruto said to him defiantly and turned to face forward again. His neck and cheeks heated up as he realized what he said probably made no sense at all.

Yet, Sasuke didn't comment. Naruto would have thanked him for that. Except that he hated the bastard. Look at him, he was a complete arrogant asshole. Naruto would hold firm to his mostly unfounded convictions. He was very good at that.

* * *

Lunch.

The most brilliant part of the day. Naruto sighed happily to himself as he followed the course of the crowd towards the cafeteria. Lessons here were painfully boring. Nearly everyone paid attention. And the Uchiha kid had been in half of his classes. Naruto had decided that Sasuke was too familiar for a mortal enemy, so Uchiha would have to do. And even then, he wasn't quite satisfied, since the name didn't apply solely to Sasuke.

When Naruto's parents had been pondering their son's doom and destruction, one of the teachers from this school had come to visit to talk about the benefits of the school. Uchiha Itachi. Naruto had liked the man well enough, but something about him was different, and a little weird. Naruto had _tried_ to explain this to his parents, but they'd called him rude. Itachi himself seemed to notice Naruto's distress and had told him about how wonderful all the students were and how well equipped the cafeteria was... In any case, Naruto had ended up here. At the cafeteria. Finally.

After impatiently waiting through the line, Naruto had gotten his food and sat down next to Gaara. "Are you going to eat that?" Naruto asked, stealing some fries from his roommate's plate. Four days they had spent in the same room. Naruto considered that time enough to be best mates. If not... Something was obviously wrong here. And it wasn't Naruto.

Kiba snickered and sat down across from Naruto. "I think you have a fan," He gestured.

Naruto inwardly grimaced and snuck a look at where Kiba was pointing. Uchiha. "I hate him," Naruto said simply, eating more of Gaara's fries, since he didn't have nearly enough of his own.

"You should stay away from him," Gaara said simply. Gaara didn't speak often, Naruto had come to find. So when he did speak, Naruto always took it into careful consideration.

"I don't plan to buddy up to him or anything! Not like the rest of the people here," Naruto scoffed, watching as eyes followed the black haired boy. "He's not even that good looking," Naruto said distractedly, burning his tongue on some hot ramen.

"Watch it," A lazy voice drawled from behind him. Naruto glanced back to see Shikamaru. They'd been introduced before, but Naruto hadn't seen much of the other boy.

"Are y-you okay?" Hinata said, hiding behind Shikamaru, carefully peeking out.

Grinning, Naruto jumped to his feet and fingered his hair absently. "Yeah, I'm brilliant," Naruto said, ignoring the burning feeling on his tongue. That stung like a bitch. "You can sit next to me if you want," Naruto gestured to the open seat beside him.

Hinata blushed and nodded hesitantly. She set her tray down and carefully sat down, rigid and stiff. Naruto frowned, wondering if something was wrong, but sat down next to her all the same. "How are your classes? Mine are all a right bore," Naruto whined.

"The same as ever," Kiba growled. "Full of v - " Shikamaru shoved him in the side before he could finish his sentence. Kiba pushed him back. "Very boring teachers," He spat out.

The two seemed to be having a staring contest. Naruto glanced at Hinata. "Maybe they need some alone time?" He said to her, trying to make it sound suggestive.

She gave a small laugh and delicately picked up her sandwich. "M-maybe," She agreed.

"Oi, what does that mean?" Kiba said, glaring and pointing at Naruto.

"Nothing, dog-breath, it just means that you guys look awfully cozy together," Naruto said, pointing back.

The two boys stood up, hands on the table and glared at each other.

"Fighting again?" Came a disinterested monotone.

Despite himself, Naruto flushed and whirled around to face Uchiha. He eyed the other boy suspiciously and crossed his arms over his chest, not even noticing the quiet that had descended on the table behind him as Kiba and Shikamaru stared uneasily at Sasuke.

"What are you doing here?" Naruto asked accusingly.

Shrugging, Sasuke reached down and took one of Naruto's own fries. The ones he'd been saving for himself for last. "It's much easier to save you from the animals when I'm close at hand," Sasuke said, twirling the piece of food, studying it with something akin to curiosity in his eyes.

"I'm not a fucking damsel in distress," Naruto said, glaring daggers at the boy. "Now leave me alone," He spat out and twirled back around to thump down in his seat, viciously attacking his fries before anyone else ate them.

Naruto effectively ignored the rest of the table while he inwardly fumed and consumed all of his food. The only signal he had that Uchiha had even left was that the rest of his new friends started talking to each other. Kiba and Shikamaru seemed to be intent on a private conversation between themselves. Naruto tried to lean closer when he thought he heard his own name.

"N-Naruto," Hinata said quietly beside him. "A-are you okay?"

Well that was a loaded question. Naruto couldn't quite place what it was about Sasuke that made his hackles rise, but there was something there. He didn't like it. The less contact they had with each other the better.

Slapping a smile on his face, Naruto slung his arm around Hinata's shoulder. "I'm great," He said cheerily, looking at everyone at the table. Kiba and Shikamaru seemed to have ended their conversation. "Can I have that?" He pointed at Shikamaru's tray. There was a cookie there he had his eyes on.

Shoving the tray over, Shikamaru muttered something about "troublesome" and rose to his feet, walking away. Gaara casually rose to his feet as well, having been silent through the whole ordeal. Without even a word, he followed Shikamaru. Naruto shrugged and took the cookie, retracting his arm from an incredibly red Hinata.

Kiba snorted and winked at Naruto. Who looked confused but.. winked back? Kiba laughed. "Say, I'll leave you two lovebirds alone. I've got a.. medical checkup," Kiba grinned, baring his teeth in a feral gesture.

Naruto nodded for two seconds, dismissing his friend when - "HEY, WHAT?"

* * *

As soon as Sasuke had turned on his heel and left the scene, he'd flung away the offending human food item. It looked vile. Sasuke barely noticed a pink head trying to get his attention as he swept through the cafeteria, leaving it almost as fast as he had come.

It had been a wasted venture. Sasuke hated wasting his time. He should just bite the boy and be done with it. Uzumaki Naruto. Sasuke narrowed his eyes and shoved his hands in his pants pockets as he walked. It would be too easy to just bite him, Sasuke mused to himself. He had to make the boy suffer. For what he was doing to Sasuke. All it ever took was a smile, and his prey was caught. Why was this so different?

Clenching his jaw, Sasuke felt his cheek twitch. Uzumaki Naruto would be his. And Sasuke would crush him.

* * *

**I appreciate reviews as much as the next person. Thanks for reading!**


	4. Chapter 4

* * *

**Chapter Four**

* * *

"Eh?" Naruto said, looking down at a piece of paper that had just landed on his desk. "We've only been in school a week, why are we having a test already?" Naruto whined, twirling his pen in his hands. His eyes scanned the pages of the exam and his previous good mood sank considerably.

It was Friday. And that meant that it was the last day of classes before the weekend. And the weekend meant two whole days of freedom from school. It had been a most trying week. Consisting of more homework than Naruto could ever remember receiving in his life, and more encounters with Uchiha Sasuke than Naruto could ever remember wanting in his life. Two of the most horrible things in existence, basically.

Every day, it seemed, Sasuke found new ways to torture Naruto. Gradually, Naruto began anticipating the attacks and personal space issues and the touching. Who ever taught him manners? Naruto was going to give them a piece of his mind. Just as soon as he worked his way through this test. What was it on again? Oh, right. History.

Glancing around the room, Naruto himself found everyone else intently absorbed in the examination. Even that bastard. Who was smiling to himself for some ungodly reason, Naruto was sure. Grumbling, Naruto tried to focus on the questions. He began circling answers haphazardly. He hadn't studied, and he hadn't any idea what the questions referred to. Maybe he should start paying attention in class?

Before Naruto even knew it, the teacher had announced "Pencils down." Sighing, Naruto slammed his pen down and passed up his paper. Automatic fail. They were going to kick him out of school. He just knew it. He did. It was all over.

Dropping his face in his hands, Naruto whined to himself. His parents were going to be so disappointed. But it served them right for sending him off to some school he'd never even heard of before and leaving him alone, stranded with a bunch of strangers that did weird things to him like blow in his ear and – Hey wait!

Jerking away, Naruto practically fell out of his seat. The classroom was empty. Except for him. And Sasuke. And the teacher. Uchiha Itachi. He was giving them an odd look as he organized the papers on his desk. Muttering to himself, Naruto hopped back on his feet and immediately punched Sasuke in the shoulder. "Don't do that, bastard," He said defiantly, gathering up his things.

"You were sleeping," Sasuke pointed out.

"Wasn't," Naruto countered.

"Were."

"Wasn't."

"Were."

"Children," Itachi's voice cut through their bickering. Both students looked up, Naruto with a chastised expression, Sasuke with utter hate. "As delightful as this is, you are going to be late for your next lesson," He reminded them.

Naruto looked at the time and started scrambling out of the room. That is, he attempted to scramble out, but a pale hand had caught his wrist and was holding him back. "Let me go," Naruto yanked on his hand and looked up at Sasuke who was still staring at his brother. "Listen, you can have family time alone, and I'll go to class and - "

"Shut up," Sasuke said quietly.

Itachi just tilted his head and observed his brother. Naruto found them to be the strangest siblings that ever existed. If he had had a brother of his own, he wouldn't want them to be anything like the Uchiha brothers.

"You will come see me for dinner, Sasuke," Itachi said and turned away to his things. A dismissal.

Sasuke wasn't responding, and he still wasn't moving, nor was he letting Naruto's wrist go. So, really, Naruto did the only thing he could do. He punched Sasuke. Again. With his free hand. "Let's _go_," He whined.

"Fine, come," Sasuke said, dragging Naruto after him.

They were definitely late now. The halls were completely empty. Naruto sighed and contented himself to walk at Sasuke's slow pace. If they were going to be late, they might as well do it in style. If only he could just get his hand back to his own self.

"I think you're damaged in the head," Naruto said after a long moment of silence. He looked up to see Sasuke looking down at him with an amused smirk.

"Hm," Was all the other boy said, looking away.

Usually when Naruto met new people he made friends with them almost instantly. It was a very special gift he had. Naruto had many excellent friends. But Uchiha Sasuke.. Naruto wanted no part of! Despite the other boy apparently wanting everything to do with him. Normally Naruto might not have minded. It was just the _way_ in which Sasuke went about things. It was terribly annoying. Naruto had no intentions of becoming friends with him. It just sort of happened. Like a horrible understanding.

With one squeeze of his wrist that made Naruto squirm, his hand was suddenly free. Rubbing it, Naruto held his arm protectively against himself. In case Uchiha started to get any more ideas. "Don't blow in my ear again, okay?" Naruto said, kicking the boy half-heartedly.

"I make no promises," Sasuke said blandly.

"Like I said: damaged in the head," Naruto shook his head. They were almost to the classroom. Mostly without incident. That was wonderful. Naruto was just about to open the door and walk in when he was slammed against the wall.

"What would you even know about it?" Sasuke whispered lowly, dangerously in Naruto's ear. There was that whole.. breath again. Naruto unsuccessfully tried to push his way free of Sasuke's grip. "Don't make the mistake of pretending you understand me, _Naruto_," Sasuke said his name like it was a caress.

When he pulled away, Naruto shivered, but glared up at the boy all the same. "You're such a bastard. I don't need to understand you to know that," Naruto huffed and stormed into the classroom.

It was difficult being friends with a homicidal maniac.

* * *

While it was a simple plan in theory, it was a difficult one to execute. Sasuke was finding it harder and harder to not just take what he wanted and be done with it. True, Naruto was an intriguing specimen. More intriguing than most of the rest of the people at this school. But it didn't warrant all the attention Sasuke was lavishing on him. Not in the slightest.

And now, now of all things. Itachi had noticed. It had been an oversight to start bickering with the boy in front of his brother. One he would certainly not make again. But one that he would pay for this evening. Dinner. Evenings with Itachi were trying, to say the least.

The only way both of them were going to survive that meeting was if Sasuke took what he needed beforehand. And since Naruto wasn't ready, not in the way that Sasuke wanted him to be, he'd have to find someone else.

Finding someone would not be difficult. Currently, Sasuke was sitting in the cafeteria at a table in the corner and reading a book. He never ate. He did not need to. What was the point in keeping up pretenses? While his eyes scanned the pages of the book, he contemplated his options. There was the pink haired girl, Sakura. She had approached him a myriad of times since the first asking for more. Sasuke had refused. It was best not to repeat these things, it left chances for the real memories to resurface.

While Sasuke was picking out his victim, he was also gazing intently at Naruto. After one failed attempt at trying to be sociable, Sasuke didn't bother trying to claim him during lunch time. There were so many other opportunities to be had.

"I know what you are," A disinterested voice disrupted Sasuke's internal monologue.

The presence had been noticed, of course, but Sasuke was attempting to learn to let people 'surprise' him. It was all Itachi's counseling, of course. Sasuke loved freaking people out when they thought they'd snuck up on him. How could they when they smelled so distinctly? "Do you," Sasuke said, lowering his eyes back to the book. Humans thought they were so clever.

"I do," Gaara said, sitting down across from Sasuke.

Folding his book closed, Sasuke looked up, face impassive. "Am I supposed to be impressed?"

"You should pay more attention to what you're doing," Gaara said, examining an apple in his hands. "Naruto is not blind."

Ah. So it was more of a friendly warning than anything else. Humans were so predictable. "You could have fooled me," Sasuke said, rising from his chair. Conversation was not really his thing.

"Uchiha." Sasuke paused. "You look hungry," The boy tossed the apple at him. Sasuke looked down at it in his hands. It was red.

Rising to his feet, Gaara stuck his hands in his pocket and walked away.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at the apple. Before tossing it in the garbage. He was hungry. But how could he feed when they were watching him? At least now he knew the threat. As he was sure his brother knew. Oh, Itachi would be hearing about this later.

* * *

"Hey, Gaara, what was that?" Naruto asked when Gaara sat back down at their lunch table. Kiba and Shikamaru had been tense the whole time Gaara had been gone. Naruto hadn't paid much mind, simply chatted with Hinata.

"Nothing," Gaara replied with a small shrug.

Naruto looked up and grinned. "Did the bastard hurt your feelings? Because I'll kick his ass for you. I mean, I'll do it anyway," Naruto started to rise, but Gaara's hand shot out and pulled him back down.

"You should not be around him right now," Gaara said firmly.

"Why not?" Naruto asked puzzled.

"N-Naruto," Hinata's voice interrupted the tension.

"Yeah?" Naruto swung around to face Hinata, his face lighting up. He really liked the girl. She was friendly and shy and fun to tease. What wasn't there to love about that?

She blushed with all Naruto's attention on her. "W-what are you doing t-tonight?"

At this, Kiba looked up from his lunch tray. "He's hanging out with all of us in the common area tonight, aren't you, Naruto?" Kiba winked at him.

Naruto was beginning to suspect Kiba had a persistent twitch in his eyelid for how much the boy winked. "Yeah, I was, you want to come, Hinata?" He asked.

"Oh," She said, even more red now. "Yes."

Grinning, Naruto gave her a half hug. "That's wonderful. We're celebrating the first week of school being done. It's bound to be a blast."

* * *

"Sakura," Ino called, leaning on the doorway of their shared room. "Are you still sulking?"

The other girl shifted on the bed and looked up at her best friend. "I'm not sulking," She said, a small quaver to her voice. "I'm planning," She said, quirking her lips up into a devious smile.

"What are you planning, then?" Ino asked, walking into the room and sitting on the edge of the desk.

"I'm going to make Uchiha Sasuke mine," Sakura said, narrowing her eyes at the wall.

Ino could only laugh. Make an Uchiha hers? She knew that trial much better than you'd think. And it was a difficult road to walk down. Once you got there, you weren't even sure you wanted it, but you'd never give it up. Not once you had it. Ino smiled wistfully. There was supposed to be a party tonight, but maybe she should.. make a different kind of visit.

"Ino, are you listening to me?" Sakura said, gently prodding her friend.

Coming back to, Ino grinned. "Of course I am. You know, I think I have an idea to help you out..."

* * *

**Thank you so much to those that have reviewed! I really appreciate them since they motivate me to write more often. And thanks to everyone for reading.**


	5. Chapter 5

* * *

**Chapter Five**  


* * *

"And what are you doing here, Miss Yamanaka?"

Pausing in her detective work, Ino looked up at the doorway where the voice had come from. "I was hoping you'd graded my test already, ah, Mr. Uchiha," Ino said simply, dropping her hands to her side. She had been ruffling through the papers on his desk, but nowhere near where the tests were located.

"That's very forward of you," Itachi said, walking into his office, brushing past her to sit behind his desk.

Ino simply smiled and tugged at her hair. "I know how you like forwardness," She said, walking around the edge of the desk, so she could perch on the edge of it right in front of him.

"What were you really doing?" Itachi asked, reaching up to undo the buttons of her blouse.

"I was curious about Uzumaki Naruto," Ino said, leaning forward, so he didn't have to extend his hand far.

"And why is that?" Itachi raised an eyebrow, leaning back in his chair to examine her.

Sliding off the desk, Ino placed her knees on either side of his legs, straddling his waist. "I know you like blondes," She whispered lowly, moving in to press her lips against his.

Before she could, however, Itachi had hissed and jerked her head to the side, exposing her neck. Ino didn't even have time to put up much of a protest before he had bitten into her neck.

* * *

The weekend! It was finally here. Naruto grinned and flopped down onto his bed. He'd deposited his bag, loosened his tie and stared blissfully at his canopy. "Can you believe it, Gaara? One week of school already," Naruto sighed, and began squirming his way into his bed. Maybe just a short nap before their gathering tonight.

"Yes," Gaara said from his side of the room. The headphones were in again, Naruto could see. Not that he minded, since Gaara still conversed with him when he was like this. Well, at least about as much as a wall did.

"No more homework."

"Hm."

"No more classes."

"Hm."

"No more Uchihas."

"Hm."

Naruto glanced at his roommate. "Say, Gaara," He propped himself up on his elbow. "Why don't you like Sasuke? Not that I care, he's a real bastard. If you tell me what he did, I'll beat him up and he won't bother you again. I promise," Naruto said, placing a hand over his heart.

Gaara turned his head to face Naruto. "Stay away from him," Was all he said before looking away again.

"It's about as pleasant talking to you as Uchiha," Naruto huffed, sitting up properly. "I'm going to find out what he did, and then I'll kick his ass. It wouldn't be right if I did it without knowing, you know?"

Gaara wasn't listening anymore. Naruto hopped off the bed and began rummaging through his things. Heart to hearts with Gaara were a little trying. But Naruto was firm in his convictions. He was quite certain the two boys had a troubled past and Gaara had gone to confront Sasuke about it, which was why the cold boy had stalked out of the cafeteria somewhat angrily. At least, as much as Sasuke showed anger. Naruto could tell, though. And then Gaara had rejoined them perfectly content as anything.

It was suspicious. Naruto kept replaying the scene over and over in his head. The cafeteria. That was where it all began... and. Naruto's stomach growled. The cafeteria! His mother had told him about it. It was more than Naruto could have ever dreamed of. Sighing, he picked up his shower things. First: shower. Then: food. It was a brilliant plan and one not at all prone to going wrong.

* * *

Sasuke could smell blood.

Baring his fangs, Sasuke approached the door cautiously. If Itachi was feeding, he wouldn't appreciate the intrusion. Sasuke could only thank whatever deity existed for this delightful opportunity. Yanking the door open, he stepped inside, taking stock of his surroundings.

There was his brother. Bent over a student. A female student. In an accelerated state of undress. Making a disgusted face, Sasuke turned his back. "You're a pervert," Sasuke said to the wall.

A low chuckle sounded behind him. Along with a high-pitched squeal. That must be the girl. The blonde one that hung about that pink haired girl who kept bothering him. How unusual. "Sasuke," Itachi's voice drawled. "Turn around."

The command merely made Sasuke want to stare at the wall for awhile longer. After a couple seconds in which he pretended not to hear, Sasuke finally turned. His older brother sat perfectly composed with the disheveled girl arranged in his lap. "When you said dinner, I hardly expected this," Sasuke said monotonously.

"I didn't expect you so soon," Itachi said dismissively. Putting the girl together in his lap, he pushed her off once she was presentable. "I hope not to find you snooping among my things again, Miss Yamanaka," Itachi said. Sasuke could sense the authority there, the return to a teacher-student relationship, but who could miss the undertones? It was sickening. The _emotion_.

For her part, the girl simply smiled and walked towards the door, looking up at Sasuke as she did. "Play nice," She said, an amused laugh coming from her as she shut the door behind her.

The insolence of these students. Sasuke turned his gaze back to his brother and glared. "What have you called me here for now?" He asked, standing firmly in place after Itachi gestured for him to sit.

"I saw you made a friend," Itachi shrugged and moved to stand as well. If they were going to play that game, then they could play it.

Sasuke grimaced. "I don't make friends."

"You're so simple, little brother," Itachi said, a fond smile on his face. It was terrifying.

"And you're disgraceful, older brother. She's your student."

Itachi waved his hand, dismissing that matter. "She came to me first," Was about all that Itachi was ever going to say on the matter. "I want you to keep an eye on a few individuals for me. Though, I'm sure you already are aware of their presence."

"I am," Sasuke said. This was the reason he had been called all the way here? It was a waste of time. Sasuke was already well aware of the people in this school. The innocents and the not so innocents. He wasn't conceited enough to think he and Itachi were the only vampires. Nor was he arrogant enough to assume their presence had gone unnoticed. Did Itachi find him simple minded? Sasuke hardly needed to be reminded about these things.

"That is good, then," Itachi passed Sasuke a piece of paper. "If you will, however, become friends with these people," Itachi said, tilting his head and observing Sasuke. "I would very much appreciate that."

It was not much of a request, Sasuke could tell. "I'm going to kill you one day," Sasuke said, after looking up from the list of names.

Smiling, Itachi folded his hands on his desk and leaned forward. "But first, tell me about your new friend."

* * *

"You're wet," Sasuke considered the boy in front of him. The trip back from Itachi's office had been a long and infuriating one. Time spent with his brother set him on edge. And now, now here was another cause for his ire.

Looking like he was caught stealing something, Naruto clutched the juice in his hands and stared at Sasuke with wide eyes. It only lasted for a moment, however. Sasuke would have to cause him to make that expression again one day. But for now, the other boy was glaring again. "That's what happens when you shower," Naruto said, pushing past Sasuke.

"What are you doing here?" Sasuke followed.

"What does it look like. You're not a very smart bastard," Naruto growled.

Sasuke could appreciate the boy's emotions. Not that he cared for them, but he could appreciate them. "We've already had dinner," Sasuke said, as if he was even included in that statement.

"Is that so!" Naruto yelled and spun around to face Sasuke.

He smirked. "It is."

Receiving a punch in the shoulder, Sasuke didn't budge. "I'm on to you," Naruto hissed, trying to look intimidating as he got close to Sasuke. "I know what you're doing here," Naruto said, narrowing his eyes. "You won't succeed, and I won't let you hurt him!"

Sasuke had been following the boy pretty well until the last part. What? "I don't want to hurt him," Sasuke said, deciding to play along with whatever was going through the boy's head.

"Good," Naruto said, huffing and pushing Sasuke away from him. "Because I wouldn't let you. I'd have to beat you up."

"It wouldn't hurt," Sasuke said dismissively, grabbing Naruto's wrist again and leading him away.

"Hey! What is this? Let me go," Naruto whined. He was doing such an excellent job of intimidating Sasuke, certainly.

Before they had been in a main hallway and there had been other students around. Sasuke led him down a side hallway where the classrooms could be find during school hours. Now they were empty.

Pressing Naruto to the wall, Sasuke got in his face, much as Naruto had done before. "I don't want to hurt _him_," Sasuke said, emphasizing this time. He brought Naruto's hand up he still had a grip on, pushing it against the wall above his head. "Not when there are so many more interesting people to hurt," Sasuke said lowly, lips inches from Naruto's.

"Bastard," Naruto hissed, turning his face to the side. His cheeks were red. Sasuke could only smile.

"What of it?" He asked, making his voice the picture of curiosity. Frankly, it did not matter to him what Naruto called him. His plan was going perfectly. The adorable blush, the secluded place. Now, to just aim for the neck.

It was a little soon, but Sasuke was irritated the boy was practically begging for it. Who was Sasuke to deny him his pleasure? Lips descending against the tan neck, Sasuke began to bite down when -

"What the fuck are you doing?" Naruto asked, shoving Sasuke away. Which, at the moment, was like trying to push a mountain. "Get off me," Naruto said, punching and squirming and kicking. "You're a fucking pervert, is what you are. I'll beat you up!" Naruto insisted, trying his best.

Consider the mood ruined. Sasuke drew away and let the boy go. "You aren't strong enough to beat me up, Uzumaki," Sasuke tilted his head to the side, considering the blond boy.

"Fuck you," Naruto huffed and stalked away.

Sasuke watched him go for a moment. This was going to be a setback in his plan, he was quite sure. But that didn't stop him from feeling the trembling in the other boy's body.

With a small smirk, Sasuke followed.

* * *

It all seemed very simple when Ino had been explaining it. Sakura understood the logistics quite well. Make him jealous. Get with his friend. Somehow, it would make Sasuke see that all he really wanted was to be with Sakura.

Sighing dreamily, Sakura got ready for the gathering that evening. She made sure to dress as enticingly as possible, with as much makeup as possible to make her appealing. She would leave nothing to chance. Sasuke would be hers tonight.

When she got to the small lounge area that most of the students living in this block of the building were hanging about in, Sakura looked around. Neither of them seemed to be there yet. Fingering her neck awkwardly, as it had begun to tingle, Sakura took a seat near the people she knew he hung out with. That is, Naruto.

It took ages, and Sakura was simply bored out of her mind before they showed up. Both of them. Naruto was yelling. Sakura knew him a little, having a few classes together. He seemed like a loud boy and not at all like the cool, collected, handsome Sasuke. There he was, staring intently at Naruto.

Sakura wasted no time in hopping to her feet and presenting herself in front of the blond boy. "Hello, Naruto," She said shyly.

This stopped the tirade of dirty words coming from his mouth. Sakura was pleased as he looked over her. She could also feel Sasuke's eyes on her quite suddenly. Smiling pleasantly, Sakura held out her hand. "Haruno Sakura," She said, feeling like she hadn't quite introduced herself yet. "I've heard so much about you, Naruto," She fluttered her eyelashes.

Charming boys was her specialty, after all.

This one didn't seem to need much work, since he was blushing already. Sakura moved closer. "Would you come sit with me?" She asked, after he had taken her hand. Gently she moved her thumb across the back of his hand.

"Eh," Naruto said, reaching up to rub the back of his neck.

Maybe if he never talked, Sakura could find him attractive in a way. But unfortunately he was incapable of that. At least, that's how she saw it. When Ino had told her about this plan, she'd been against it at first. But now that it was in motion, and she could see Sasuke staring at her intently, as if he was trying to figure her out, Sakura couldn't help but be pleased.

"I would like it very mu - " Sakura was saying before she was cut off.

By lips. Not exactly the lips she expected, and really much too soon, but Sakura was not one to look a gift horse in the mouth. She immediately responded, wrapping her arms around Naruto's neck as he kissed her inexpertly. It wasn't bad, it was just that he didn't know what he was doing. Too much tongue, a lot of saliva. Sakura didn't even bother to close her eyes, she just kept watching Sasuke, pretending he was kissing her, and kissing back with much fervor.

This had been such an excellent plan. He was getting jealous already, she could tell.

* * *

That pink haired girl again. As soon as she approached Naruto, Sasuke could tell she was up to something.

But he never expected Naruto to make the first move. And as Naruto tilted his head, he could see the boy's blue eyes staring at him, narrowed angrily. Oh. So that was how it was. Sasuke smirked. And watched them for a long while. Neither of them seemed to be letting up. Sasuke stared with narrowed eyes at Naruto's back, as they had moved again. He never even noticed the girl's eyes on him.

All the while, anger built up in his chest, and he was in desperate need of release. He could feel the tension in the air from the other students. It was practically palpable, even to the humans. Those students whose names were on his list were standing and looking at him apprehensively. Sasuke looked up, away from Naruto and gave them a disarming smirk.

"Well," He said into the silence. "This was unexpected," Sasuke looked back at Naruto.

They were still kissing. Naruto obviously had a death wish. Stepping forward, Sasuke gently took the girl from Naruto's arms. She looked up at him and was about to say something before he unceremoniously deposited her onto Gaara's lap.

"Come with me," Sasuke said, grabbing Naruto's wrist and leading him away for the third time today. "We need to have a conversation," Sasuke's mouth twitched.

"Uchiha," A warning voice sounded.

"Don't come back to our room, Nara, it won't be pretty," Sasuke said before disappearing with a dazed blond in tow.

* * *

**Thanks for the reviews! They really help me get to writing. :)**


	6. Chapter 6

* * *

**Chapter Six**

* * *

"Are you alright?"

Sakura looked up at the person speaking to her. Green eyes stared back. Very intense green eyes. Sakura felt a light blush across her cheeks. Which further deepened when she realized where she was exactly.

Practically falling out of the boy's lap, Sakura rose to her feet and brushed herself off. Taking a deep breath, she flashed everyone a brilliant smile. "I'm perfectly fine," She said through clenched teeth, cheek twitching as she attempted to keep herself together before running off.

That... that _Naruto_ had used her! When _she_ was supposed to be using _him_! Sakura hurried to the room she shared with Ino to tell her friend all about the disastrous occurrence. Sasuke was never going to love her, was he?

Sakura fell down onto her bed, clutching her pillow to her chest. It had been a horrible evening. She just wanted to curl up and die.

All she could think about were green eyes.

* * *

Kiba clenched his fist as he stared after the retreating backs of the three people that had just left the area. "I'll kill him," He said, insistently, feet finally moving to follow.

Rolling his eyes, Shikamaru grabbed Kiba by the back of the shirt and yanked him back down to sit. "You'll do no such thing. He isn't our target."

"But he's going to fucking bite him!" Kiba spat, struggle to stand up.

Gaara turned cold eyes onto the pair. "It isn't against the rules," He said simply.

Kiba grimaced. "Well it should be."

"Be that as it may," Shikamaru held up a hand. "We can't move against Uchiha unless he breaks a rule. You know our orders."

"This mission sucks," Kiba grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest and glaring at both of them. "I'll talk to boss about this," Kiba said, his face suddenly lighting up. This time he successfully rose to his feet. "Yeah, she'll tell me I can kill him for sure."

Sighing, Shikamaru thwacked Kiba upside the head. "As much as you'd love that, I'm sure," Shikamaru grimaced here. "You aren't supposed to go see her for trivial things like that.

"Who said it was trivial?" Kiba gave a predatory smirk. "The last time I saw her, we - "

"Nobody wants to hear that, dog breath."

"You're just jealous," Kiba said, feeling superior.

"Of what?" The new person grimaced. A girl. "You smell."

Gaping, Kiba jumped to his feet again. "I smell like fucking roses, I'll have you know."

"Like horse shit," The girl grinned, rising to her feet as well.

"Temari," Gaara's voice cut across the room. "So nice of you to join us."

Turning to face her brother, Temari crossed her arms over her chest and smirked. "I was busy. Not all of us have so much free time to hang about uselessly," Here she shot a glare at Kiba.

Sighing, Shikamaru stepped between the two. "We should take this conversation elsewhere if we're going to have it," He reminded them. It was a public space, after all. It was probably best not to get too specific, yes? If only the others could notice that... They were such a bother.

"Yeah, let's go to your room Shikamaru," Kiba said, starting to move away.

"No," Gaara cut them off again. "If you interrupt, Naruto will never forgive you."

Grumbling, Kiba frowned and paused. "If I don't, he might die," He whispered, and stalked away.

* * *

Currently, Naruto was wishing he had reconsidered his previous actions. Maybe if he had thought a little more clearly, he wouldn't be in the situation he was in now. Maybe, just maybe, everything would be perfectly fine and he'd be having a lovely evening with his friends.

Yeah, right.

It wasn't that Naruto had _wanted_ to kiss Sakura. Heavens no. The girl was attractive and Naruto had eyed her up a few times, sure. But she wasn't the girl he wanted to go after. It bothered him all the more that.. that she had been there. Had seen. Naruto could only imagine what she was thinking. It was just that Sakura was there! And Sasuke had been glaring at him. Naruto didn't know what to do.

Because if there was one thing that Naruto was sure of, it was that he _was not gay_. Sasuke had to understand this. Even if Naruto had to be publicly demonstrative about it. He liked girls! And anyways, didn't Sasuke like girls too? Naruto flushed as he recalled the incident in the bathroom. Geezus, the boy seemed to like to get around.

And now... it was almost like he'd indirectly kissed Sasuke. By kissing Sakura. Who Sasuke had probably kissed. Aw, hell.

"Can you not drag me by my hand?" Naruto growled, trying for the millionth time to unsuccessfully yank his hand out of the other's grip.

Sasuke didn't even respond. Just glanced once at Naruto, a slight look of interest on his face. As if he couldn't figure out why Naruto had even bothered to speak. Well, no surprise there, Naruto couldn't figure it out himself either. For all the bloody good it seemed to do.

Grumbling to himself, Naruto tried to walk as slowly as possible, until the tugging on his arm was driving him nuts and he was pretty sure it was going to yank out of its socket. "Slow down, bastard, I don't walk as freakishly fast as you."

Suffice to say, Sasuke wasn't listening.

By the time they got to Sasuke's room, Naruto was inwardly going over all the possible things that Sasuke was going to do with him. Either he was going to be raped, or he was going to be beat up, or they could have a good heart to heart about feelings and boundaries in friendships that weren't romantic, okay, because some parties weren't actually into other boys, yeah. Two out of the three options seemed pretty plausible. The other, not so much.

Pushed roughly into the room, Naruto looked around. The furniture was exactly the same as his and Gaara's, but it felt completely different. For instance, half of his room was completely trashed from Naruto living in it. Here, the whole place was meticulously clean. Rubbing his now free wrist, Naruto took a look around. He'd face judgment day soon. For now, he ignored Sasuke.

"Which one is yours?" He asked after a moment of inspecting, finding the place wasn't too bad, just not really a place Naruto could ever get used to staying in.

"The right one," Sasuke answered from directly behind Naruto.

Shuddering delicately, Naruto didn't bother to turn around. He wouldn't give the boy the satisfaction. Instead, he just walked over and hopped up on the bed, making himself comfortable. Kicking off his shoes, he crossed his legs and leaned against the wall. "So, bastard, what's on your mind?" Naruto tilted his head. He was perfectly calm, perfectly collected.

Sasuke leaned against his bed post and gazed intently at Naruto. "You're probably diseased," He commented offhand.

Grinning, Naruto sat up. "You think so? I didn't think you had any diseases, but now that I know, I'll go get that checked out straight away. Don't want to end up like you, after all."

Sasuke's lip twitched at that. Naruto could just tell the boy was getting angry. "You don't know where that thing has been. You shouldn't put your lips on it," Sasuke said again, making himself more clear.

"Oh, Sakura?" Naruto shrugged. "It seemed like a brilliant idea at the time. Maybe I'll ask her out, she isn't so bad at kissing, you know. I mean, she seemed to want it too. Did you see how into it she was?" Naruto curled his lips upwards. Oh yeah, this was pissing the bastard off. Naruto could see the resolve crumbling.

At the end of the tirade, Sasuke got up on the bed as well and crawled forward towards Naruto. "Are you taunting me?" He asked, voice perfectly calm.

"We're friends, aren't we?" Naruto asked, feeling his heartbeat racing. Danger, danger. Assert non-gayness now. Avoid meeting eyes.

Naruto was caught staring into Sasuke's eyes. "Friends tell each other these things," Naruto said lamely, voice sort of petering out at the end of his sentence.

"We aren't friends," Sasuke said.

Which really actually startled Naruto. He knew they'd had some, well, problems lately. What with one of them trying to come on to the other, but still! That didn't mean they had to stop being friends. What was with that? Sasuke had been the one to want to be friends in the first place. This was really ridiculous. Naruto frowned, and smacked Sasuke in his shoulder. "Bastard," He growled.

Smirking, Sasuke sat back on his heels, regarding Naruto. Naruto glared back at him.

They sat like that for awhile.

"Don't do that again," Sasuke said after five minutes of silence. Continuing his trek forward, he reached out and traced his finger down Naruto's cheek, across his scars. Naruto shivered at the look in the boy's eyes.

With good reason too. As quite suddenly, Naruto was being pushed up against the wall, an arm across his neck, quickly cutting him off from air. "Wha - " Naruto gasped out, losing all the air stored in his lungs. It was a struggle to return it. He kept taking in shuddering breaths. Panic was setting in quite quickly as Naruto began to fear for his life. Was Sasuke going to kill him? Naruto hadn't _really_ thought the boy was homicidal. That had been a _joke_. But -

Sasuke was staring at Naruto's eyes, never leaving, never looking at what he was doing. Naruto scrabbled at the arm across his neck. His vision was swimming as reality became harder and harder to grasp.

The world slipped to black. The last thing Naruto saw was a pair of red eyes staring intently at him.

* * *

When Naruto was unconscious, Sasuke scooped up the body into his arms and stared at the boy. Friends. Sasuke nearly scoffed at that. He was not friends with anybody. Not even this... this blond boy.

Looking away, Sasuke breathed heavily. From the excitement and not the vague emotions trying to swirl around in his head. Sasuke suppressed them. Such troublesome things. Sasuke looked down at Naruto's limp body and laid him down.

Opening his mouth, Sasuke flashed his fangs, eyes already blood red from hunger and clamped his mouth onto the boy's open shoulder.

It was not that Sasuke was particularly hungry. It was that he needed to mark his prey. Things were getting out of hand and Sasuke was not going to sit back and allow anyone else to take this boy away from him. Sasuke would play with him for a long time to come, to be sure. There had never been a more interesting prey to Sasuke. It would last. He would take as long as he needed to bring Naruto to him fully.

When Sasuke pulled away, he licked up stray drops of blood and gazed at the composed features of the smaller boy. So frail. He passed out easily. And now he would sleep for a long time yet.

Sasuke didn't bother to move him as he got out of the bed.

* * *

Sasuke was, what you could call, emotionally challenged. They didn't mean much to him. He had spent the better part of his life so far succumbing to pleasure. Not worrying about attachments. Which was what made staying at this forsaken school so long such a trial. Emotions were swirling all around him and he wanted to crush every single one of them.

Naruto was a conquest, a challenge. Sasuke's goal was to make the boy his in every possible meaning of the world. And then he would crush him. It was simple, it was easy. It just took time. Which was convenient since Sasuke had nothing but time now that Itachi had forced him into this place.

Things had started too fast, Sasuke was sure. That's what that little display had been about. Naruto was lashing out. Sasuke might have smiled if he were capable of fondness. But he wasn't. So instead, he simply kept walking. What Naruto was doing was to be expected. His methods were not so bad, Sasuke was almost proud of the young boy. However, he was too irate for that.

Pushing open the door in front of him, Sasuke stepped out into the night air. He needed time to think and to strategize. After all, in a few hours Naruto was going to wake up in his bed. And what delicious fun that would be.

"Are you trying to find a mate?" Itachi's voice rang out, halting Sasuke's steps as he exited the school building. "You never believed in it before."

"No," Sasuke's lips pulled back. "I don't believe in love."

Itachi shook his head and began following after his brother. The nighttime here was lovely. You could see the whole sky unobstructed by city lights. Not that either of them were paying any attention about it. It was merely the fact that it was night and they could freely move about outdoors.

"Of course you don't," Itachi mused, still watching Sasuke's back.

"Are you?" Sasuke asked, not caring one way or the other for an answer.

"No," Itachi said, amusement in his voice. "I already found one."

Sasuke pursed his lips distastefully. "The blonde girl? You have better taste than that, Itachi."

"Oh, but she tastes delicious," Itachi licked his fangs, baring them at Sasuke. "And where is your blond friend right now?"

Looking up, Sasuke allowed himself to smirk. "In my bed," He said, before jumping into a tree and out of Itachi's sight.

* * *

Carefully, Shikamaru opened the door to his room, uncertain of what he would find there. When he discovered it dark and silent, he looked up thankfully and entered the room. His roommate was barely there, so Shikamaru didn't often have to worry about what he might walk in on.

But tonight he had been... unsure. As much as he didn't think it was going to be a problem in the end, call it intuition, Shikamaru was still wary.

There was a dark form lying on Sasuke's bed. Shikamaru frowned. It was not Sasuke.

Approaching, Shikamaru sighed as he found the the form to be Naruto. "So troublesome," He muttered and checked for a pulse. Still there. And yet, Shikamaru felt the boy's neck. Yes.

Sitting on the edge of his bed, Shikamaru held his chin on his hand and thought. This was going to pose a problem.

* * *

**Thanks for your reviews. I appreciate them!**


	7. Chapter 7

* * *

**Chapter Seven**

* * *

There were few enough reasons that Sasuke bothered to return to his own dorm room. For one, he occasionally needed to change his clothes. For two, it would look suspicious enough to his roommate if he wasn't there at all during the night. It was a complete bother for Sasuke who preferred to roam during the night, but Itachi had insisted. Itachi insisted on many things, Sasuke found. Most of them unreasonable. What did he care if his roommate found him abnormal? It was not as if Sasuke cared about other people's opinions of him.

Now, however, there was plenty of reason for Sasuke to return. It all centered around a blond haired boy sleeping in his bed. Sasuke didn't particularly care for him, but there were things that needed to be done.

Opening his dorm room, Sasuke slipped in, not bothering to turn the lights on. He walked confidently through the room, maneuvering through the obstacles until he sat on the edge of his bed, gazing down at the boy sleeping there with narrowed eyes.

"Uchiha," His roommate's voice cut through the silence.

Not raising his gaze, Sasuke held his body in a way to signify he was listening.

"You're not the one we're after," Shikamaru sounded like he would rather be having any other conversation than this one. "But if you plan to make a nuisance of yourself, we could change that."

Sasuke nearly snorted. A threat? How cute. "I haven't done anything wrong," Sasuke said simply, reaching out to touch Naruto's neck. Where he had been bitten. That was his mark. It was a special mark, after all. It would not heal. And no other vampire would bite him. Naruto was his.

"True as that is, many are unhappy with your situation," Shikamaru continued.

"That is their problem, not mine."

"And your brother, as well. You both are part of why we're here. But don't flatter yourselves to think that's all. I suppose your brother knows as well as we do what is going on."

Sasuke looked up to see Shikamaru shrugging. He kept his face perfectly calm. So, there really was something going on. Something to bring _them_ here. Sasuke hated their kind the most of all humans. They were ignorant. And they had far too many rules. Sasuke did not like to abide by rules very much. They were so grating and insulting. "Tell me."

"There have been bodies," Shikamaru said, almost lazily. As if he didn't have any interest in the subject. It was all an act, Sasuke could see. There was a tenseness there.

"There are always bodies," Sasuke said, gaze returning to the sleeping boy. "Everywhere."

"We know they haven't been from you, your brother, or the others here," Shikamaru said, a slight frown to his words, Sasuke could hear.

"Why don't you just ask Itachi, I'm sure he knows," Sasuke said dismissively, shifting closer to the blond boy. "If this is why he called me back," Sasuke whispered, a snarl to his lips. Lowering his head, Sasuke sucked on Naruto's neck. The wound was not completely healed, after all.

Turning his head away, Shikamaru stared at the wall. "It would be troublesome to work together, Uchiha."

"I won't work at all," Sasuke murmured as he sat back up. Flicking his gaze to his roommate, Sasuke considered the boy. He was intelligent enough, Sasuke knew. Not half bad. And Itachi had given orders, after all. Flashing a smile, a most frightening thing to behold, Sasuke bared his fangs and yanked closed the curtains around his bed.

From the moment Sasuke had stepped into this school he had been aware of the Vampire Hunters. But they were only baby ones. What threat they could pose to Sasuke? None at all. It was a pathetic case they were working on, from what Sasuke had heard. He was going to give Itachi a piece of his mind later on.

For now, Sasuke stretched out on his bed, folding his arms over his stomach and stared upwards. Naruto shifted beside him. He could feel where their bodies were touching, but it made no difference to him.

This was not affection, it was not caring. Sasuke simply couldn't wait for the boy to throw a fit in the morning.

* * *

There was darkness still surrounding him when Naruto opened his eyes to the world again. It was a bright darkness, though. The kind where light has been artificially blocked off but still filtered through. Groaning, Naruto rolled over and snuggled into his blankets. He didn't want to wake up yet. He'd had fitful dreams all night and he felt like he hadn't rested at all.

"That's my arm," A voice broke through his hazy mind.

Blinking, Naruto went absolutely rigid. There was a person here. There was a person in his bed! Trying frantically to remember the night before, all Naruto could come up with was Sasuke. And being irrationally angry with him in his sleep for reasons he couldn't remember...

"Stop digging your nails into me," Sasuke's voice said again.

It must have been him. Naruto cringed and jerked upwards, looking around him. Oh, but. He moved far too fast. Clutching his head, Naruto moved into a sitting position, blinking his eyes at the scene before him.

There was Sasuke. Lying down perfectly like nothing ever bothered him and trivial things like 'bed head' were just nonexistent. And it wasn't Naruto's bed. The sheets were different. It was easy enough to tell. For one, they weren't orange.

"Where am I?" Naruto asked accusingly.

"My bed," Sasuke didn't move at all. Naruto couldn't figure out how he could just _lie there_ at a time like this!

Looking around, Naruto poked his head out of the curtains. He was assaulted by bright light and grimaced. Once his eyes adjusted to the light, Naruto could discern that they were alone. Coming back in to the realm of the bed, Naruto yanked open the curtains so the light spilled in to the dark cave that was Sasuke's area.

When the light hit Sasuke, Naruto had his back turned and didn't notice the flinch. He was too busy pulling open the curtains. Because really, if he was going to be trapped in a room with Sasuke, after having just woken up together! It was going to be bright as possible and open as possible in case he needed to call for help. This all made perfect sense in Naruto's head.

"Do you have to do that?" Sasuke said irritably, finally sitting up.

Naruto was almost surprised. Sasuke? Show outward emotion like that? It was amazing to see the dark haired boy so uncomfortable. Sitting on the bottom of the bed, Naruto placed his hands on his knees and peered at Sasuke. "Yes. Now, what happened?"

"We had sex," Sasuke shrugged, not looking away.

"Oh," Naruto nodded, as if he had expected this. Which made sense, after all why would he have -

Wait, what?

"What?!" Naruto blurted out, falling off the bed in his haste to stand upright. When he collided with the floor Naruto instantly sprang up. "You raped me!?" He was still incredulous.

Naruto had his eyes opened so wide, he could barely process this information. Why wasn't he running?! He had to tell someone! This was _disastrous_!

"You're an idiot," Sasuke's voice cut across his inner turmoil. "You slept here after you passed out in my bed," Sasuke shrugged, losing interest in looking at Naruto.

"What?" Naruto asked again, feeling his knees give out on him. Not raped? Still pure? Oh thank heavens. Naruto sunk down the wall, coming to sit with his knees up and wrapped his arms around them. "Is that your idea of a joke or something?" Naruto asked testily.

"Yes."

"You're a bastard," Naruto huffed.

"You cling in your sleep," Sasuke said casually. "And you snore."

"I do not!" Naruto looked up, anger roused again. "Take it back."

"No," Sasuke smirked.

This was... this was too much! First Naruto had woken up in a strange bed with a strange boy and then told he was raped but not really raped and now! Now he _snored_!?

Launching himself at Sasuke, Naruto pinned him to the bed, smacking his shoulder. "Take it back, bastard. I don't snore. Gaara doesn't think I snore. You're just making up ridiculous nonsense."

"See? Clingy," Sasuke said, shoving the boy off of him.

Naruto fell backwards on the bed a little less than gracefully. He stared at the canopy and crossed his arms over his chest. "I'm not clingy either. You just have problems."

Sasuke didn't respond, he simply slid off the bed and moved towards his desk. "I'd appreciate it if you don't make this a habit," Sasuke said with his back to Naruto.

Frowning, Naruto huffed and sat up properly. "I'd appreciate it if you left me alone!" Naruto said, remembering the disagreement the night before. It was so easy to forget the bad things about Sasuke, wasn't it? Naruto had fallen easily into bickering and friendly play. But now he had to force himself to remember that he didn't want to be around Sasuke. Because Sasuke had a crush on Naruto. At least, that's what he had determined. What with all the... the things.

Naruto blushed, trying not to remember any of them. Rubbing his neck, Naruto stared at Sasuke's back.

"Don't do that," Sasuke said, still not looking at him.

"Don't do what?" Naruto asked, eyeing the door. Would it be rude to leave?

"Touch your neck."

Naruto blinked and looked awkwardly at his hand that was rubbing his neck. "Why not?" He asked, not really seeing a problem with it. That is, until he rubbed it the wrong way, and Naruto's whole body flared up with intense pain.

"Because it probably hurts," Sasuke's voice drifted across Naruto's mind as he passed out for the second time in less than 24 hours.

* * *

The next time Naruto awoke, he was back in his own bed. And how exactly did he get there? Sighing, Naruto shifted. By the light streaming it, it was still daytime. How long had he been out?

"Are you up?" Naruto recognized Gaara's voice.

Turning his head, he went to look at his roommate. Unfortunately, this whole process made him exceedingly dizzy. Groaning, Naruto put a hand to his head, hoping to steady the world.

"You shouldn't move. Uchiha said you hit your head on the floor pretty badly," Gaara informed him.

Feeling a weight settle on his bed and a hand on his forehead, Naruto shifted uncomfortably. "Why do I always wake up like this?" He whined.

Gaara glanced down at him. "How would you prefer to wake up?"

Flushing deeply, Naruto gave Gaara a funny look. "Probably with a girl."

Gaara nodded and stood up. "You're fine. Just don't move too quickly. Eat something as well."

Nodding, Naruto sat up slowly. The world didn't spin so much this time. And eat! Naruto could definitely accomplish that one. Especially as it meant going to the cafeteria. His beloved cafeteria. The one he had read about online. It was beautiful. Naruto loved the food there. It was everything it was made out to be. And more.

* * *

Become friends with these people, Itachi had said.

Sasuke snarled as he yanked open the door to his brother's apartments. "Itachi," He yelled through the hallway.

After Sasuke had dropped off Naruto he had come straight for his brother. There were things to be settled now that he had the blond out of his hair for a moment. Stalking through the apartment, Sasuke recoiled at all the open windows. Did his brother have a death wish? The sunlight was painful for a vampire to bear. Not deadly, just painful.

Yanking the curtain closed, Sasuke breathed deeply when the task was done. He was standing in the middle of what could only be assumed as the living room as he waited for his brother to show up. Any second now. Itachi couldn't bear to allow people in his living space without his presence there immediately.

"I was enjoying that," His brother's voice cut across the room.

Jerking his head up, Sasuke glared. "I hate you."

"Given," Itachi inclined his head slightly.

"You called me to you to help with a problem you could solve right this instant," Sasuke said accusingly.

"Yes," Itachi smiled, holding his hand out.

A thin girl stepped from the hallway to settle herself in Itachi's arms. "What problem?" She asked, looking up at Itachi.

The sight was repulsive.

"Oh, Sasuke is just playing a game," Itachi said dismissively, leaning down to kiss the girl on her lips.

Smirking deviously, the girl tilted her eyes to take in Sasuke even as Itachi kissed her. Sasuke could only guess what sort of plans she was coming up with. Females were all the same. Laying her head against Itachi's shoulder, the girl never stopped staring at him. "Itachi," She breathed out. "I want to go on a double date," She smiled sweetly.

* * *

**Thanks for reading and thanks for the reviews!**


	8. Chapter 8

* * *

**Chapter Eight**

* * *

The weekend had passed by and the second week of classes were under way. It had been far too eventful for Sakura's tastes. After the disastrous Friday night, she'd spent all of Saturday and Sunday listening to whispers of rumors. They said the most awful things. About how Naruto had spent the night in Sasuke's room.

How did they even know?! Sakura glared at nothing in particular. She'd spent all of Friday night replaying the events in her head. It had been going so well for her. She was sure of it! But where had it all gone wrong? Naruto had kissed her just like she'd planned. And Sasuke! He'd been so jealous. Sakura was sure. But how had she ended up in... in that boy's lap?

Sakura blushed recalling _that_. Certainly she hadn't spent an undue amount of time recalling the feel of him. No. Sakura's affections were reserved solely for Uchiha Sasuke.

Nodding firmly to herself, Sakura twirled her pen in her hands. She wasn't listening to the lesson. She was staring at the back of a certain red haired boy's head while she contemplated her next move. To get Sasuke. Not... What was his name, even?

Sakura sighed and pursed her lips. She couldn't fancy a boy she didn't even know the name of. She fancied Sasuke. He was perfect and handsome and they had shared a wonderful moment together! Sakura could distinctly recall the feeling of being pushed up against the bathroom stall while he kissed her neck. Yes. That was what she wanted more of.

Thus, she would return to her plan. Ino mentioned something about a new plan in the works, but Sakura wasn't sure if she should trust her friend again. Given how well the last plan went... Maybe she should try it again from another angle.

"Naruto," Sakura hissed at the blond haired boy who was sitting behind her in the row over.

He was... sleeping. Rolling her eyes, Sakura picked up her pencil eraser and chucked it at the boy. He jerked upwards in confusion, looking around with wide eyes.

Smirking to herself, Sakura noted the glare Sasuke was sending her way. She smiled sweetly at him. And then turned her attention to Naruto. "Naruto," She whispered. "Let's talk after class," She murmured, making sure to look at him as seductively as she could possibly make herself look. Just so he didn't get confused about her intentions or anything.

Turning back in her seat, Sakura faced the front and paid perfect attention. She heard Naruto trying to get her attention again, and then a yelp from him. Sakura could only guess at what was happening back there. She wasn't going to budge. This was an important thing she was doing. Getting Sasuke's attention on her. Making Sasuke want her and not some... boy. Whatever his affections were for Naruto, Sakura was going to end that quickly enough.

Content that her plan was going to work, Sakura went back to staring at a head of red hair. Not because she had any desire for him. Of course not. All Sakura's desires were directed towards Sasuke. It was just that he had nice hair. A very bright and vibrant shade. And his eyes. Sakura sighed, not really noticing it herself. He had the most intense eyes. Almost as intense as Sasuke's. When he looked at her... She felt all fuzzy inside.

But in a bad way! Because Haruno Sakura very much adored Uchiha Sasuke. She had no room in her life for fancying other boys. Narrowing her eyes, Sakura vowed to forget green eyes and red hair. She wouldn't fantasize about them at all. All she needed was black. Black hair. Black eyes. A handsome face. That was what was for her!

* * *

As for Naruto, the weekend had gone by exceedingly fast. Saturday was spent in a blur of tiredness and a pounding headache. After he'd eaten, he'd sort of collapsed in bed all day and cursed Sasuke for whatever it was that he did to him. Because there was no doubt in Naruto's mind that Sasuke had done something. It was too suspicious!

Sunday had been spent staring in the mirror and poking his neck. He couldn't figure out just what had happened. It looked like a … bite. Naruto instantly concluded that Sasuke's bed was filled with all sorts of creepy, crawly creatures. Just like the boy himself!

When Naruto had proposed the idea to Gaara, the boy had just stared at Naruto blankly. It hadn't been a productive conversation, to say the least. Naruto just turned back to the mirror and kept prodding at it. He didn't push. Oh, no. Naruto had learned his lesson the last time. Besides, he didn't particularly feel like passing out at the moment.

Now that it was Monday, Naruto was sulking in class. It was absurdly boring. Enough to put him to sleep, really.

Thus, when he got hit in the head with an eraser, Naruto jerked awake, unaware of what had just happened.

After Sakura spoke to him, Naruto had sort of stared blankly. He tried calling her name so he could ask her something, but she was ignoring him. Huffing, Naruto chanced a side look at Sasuke. Would it be okay to see Sakura again after the last time they'd interacted? Hadn't that just gone brilliantly.

However, looking at Sasuke proved to be a bad idea, as the boy reached out and scratched his nail against the bite on Naruto's neck. He yelped and clasped a hand over his neck, glaring at Sasuke. He didn't even have the decency to be ashamed. Sasuke just sat there smirking at Naruto.

Sticking his tongue out childishly, Naruto swirled to face the front again. When he determined nothing of importance was happening, Naruto led his head drop against the desk as he furiously tried to go back to sleep. His neck was throbbing and he could feel eyes on him.

It was going to be a very long class hour.

* * *

When the bell signaled the end of the hour, Naruto leapt out of his seat and exited the classroom as swiftly as he possibly could. What he had decided was that he didn't want to see either of them. Sakura surely was going to smack him for what he had done to her. And there was just no telling what Sasuke would do. Naruto didn't think he could handle all the attention he was receiving today.

As he tore through the hallways, Naruto ran smack dab into another boy.

"Watch it," Naruto heard the voice say.

Looking up, Naruto was relieved to see it was Kiba. "Sorry, just trying to escape the madness," Naruto rubbed the back of his neck and grinned at his friend.

"Well, don't look now, but the madness is coming this way," Kiba snorted, shouldering his bag. "Hey, man, I'd love to stay and help you, but I've got to get to class."

Naruto watched forlornly as his saving grace left. Turning around, Naruto instinctively flinched before he even saw who was coming. It was Sakura. And, oh yes. Naruto could see Sasuke trailing soon behind.

"Naruto," Sakura said sweetly, reaching up to touch his shoulder.

Naruto glanced at her hand, not sure what to make of this. Was this the calm before the storm? Naruto braced himself for a punch.

"I was very sorry how things worked out on Friday," Sakura said, retracting her hand. Though, Naruto did notice how her fingers trailed down his arm. What.. was she doing? Naruto was very much confused.

"Yeah," Naruto said hesitantly, feeling a bit like a fish out of water here.

Sakura just smiled at him. "I was hoping that we could be friends."

Oh. Was that it? The gentle let down. Naruto just grinned at her. "Yeah!" He said excitedly. Friends. You could never have too many of them in a wretched place like this. Especially with evil predators around. Naruto's eyes instantly flicked up to see Sasuke standing quite close now. "I'd love to be _your_ friend, Sakura," Naruto said, emphasizing for Sasuke's benefit. Because they weren't friends. Apparently.

"That's excellent," Sakura said. Naruto didn't even notice the glance she sent towards Sasuke. "I'll see you soon, Naruto. Enjoy your next class."

Naruto rolled his eyes, but waved after her as she went. That wasn't so bad. Naruto wouldn't have minded if she'd wanted to be more. That kiss was... It was something, wasn't it? Now that Naruto had reflected on it, he was sure he wanted to do it again. And Sakura was pretty cute.

"Idiot," Sasuke's voice brought him from his musings. "We're going to be late."

"What?" Naruto blinked, looking around at the mostly empty hallway.

"Come on," Sasuke grabbed Naruto's hand and began dragging him behind. Right. Of course they would have the next class together. Fate would treat him so kindly, wouldn't it.

"I thought I asked you to stop dragging me places," Naruto said petulantly, yanking his hand out of Sasuke's grip.

Naruto was almost positive he heard a snort of disdain come from Sasuke's lips. But no! The perfectly composed boy would never do something like that. "She doesn't want to be your friend. She just wants me," Sasuke said, not even looking at Naruto. His eyes were intent on the path ahead.

"Don't be such a bastard," Naruto punched Sasuke in the shoulder. "She wouldn't have asked if she didn't want to be. And I can't even imagine why she'd want _you_."

No, this time it wasn't his imagination. Naruto really _did_ hear Sasuke snort. He was too busy snickering at that to notice the arm that suddenly snuck around his waist. And the pair of lips near his ear. "You are an idiot," Sasuke whispered, sending shivers down Naruto's body.

"What the hell was that for!" Naruto yelled as soon as he came to himself and pushed Sasuke away. "Personal space, bastard, learn it," Naruto huffed, stalking away to class.

* * *

Humans were awfully fickle about their sexuality. It hadn't taken Sasuke all that long to get over that particular hangup. It came with being indiscriminate about your choice of victims. It had been a long time since Sasuke had had to deal with someone in denial. Usually those he was with were more than willing. But Naruto... of course he wasn't going to come easy.

Sasuke smirked to himself as he leaned against the wall in a dark corner observing the boy during mealtime. He wasn't hungry.

It amazed Sasuke how much Naruto could resist and at the same time give in so easily. It never took much for Sasuke to get close. But push it too far and he was on guard again. Sasuke enjoyed the challenge. Truly, he did. Sometimes, though, Naruto needed to be reminded of who he belonged to. Which was why Sasuke did the things he did. Touching Naruto's neck, that had sent shivers of pleasure down Sasuke's own body. His mark was there for the world to see.

Pushing off the wall, Sasuke strode through the cafeteria and without giving it much though, disposed of the boy sitting next to Naruto. He tossed him aside, and swung his leg over the bench, so he was straddling it, facing Naruto. Before he could completely react, Sasuke had wrapped his arms around Naruto's shoulder and leaned in. "I'll see you tomorrow," Sasuke mouthed against his ear.

Disappearing as fast as he came, Sasuke glanced down at the boy still on the ground. He flashed his teeth in what, he supposed, was meant to pass as a smile. It wasn't.

Classes had grown tedious for him. Sasuke was bored with the infantile level of these schoolchildren and had had enough for the day. He would go out.

As he passed through the doorway, Sasuke distinctly heard his prey call out, "BASTARD!!"

* * *

Fuming, Naruto turned to help Kiba up. "Are you alright?" Naruto asked. When Kiba answered in the affirmative, Naruto leapt from his seat, having every intention of following the bastard and knocking him out. As soon as he controlled the blush on his cheeks.

"Naruto," Gaara's voice stilled his movements. "Sit."

Naruto immediately sat. Though he did glare at his roommate.

"You can't fight him," Shikamaru cut in, twirling his fork in his hand. "He's too strong. And I'm not sure he wouldn't like it."

Kiba snorted and got back in his seat.

"Are y-you ok-kay, Naruto?" Hinata said at his side.

Looking around between all of them, Naruto sighed and gave up. He would just kick Sasuke's ass another day. Have no doubt that he would! The boy was asking for it. Naruto would be happy to oblige. "I'm great," Naruto grinned at Hinata.

She blushed a bright red and smiled. Naruto couldn't help but think she looked awfully cute.

"I wonder what Sasuke wanted," Another female voice mused from their table.

Naruto looked up and glanced warily at the new member of their group. Sakura had come to sit with them today. Ever since Sasuke had said... Naruto was wary. But he wasn't going to let Sasuke rule his life! Sakura was very friendly and everyone liked her. Naruto liked her more and more.

"Bastard, it doesn't matter what he wants," Naruto huffed and stuffed a fry in his mouth.

Sakura merely looked thoughtful. Her eyes kept glancing across the table. Towards Gaara. Naruto was sure she didn't think anyone had noticed. But Naruto had been watching her for signs of being evil, like Sasuke had suggested. Naruto couldn't see it. And she seemed perfectly content stuck between Kiba and Shikamaru. Content staring at Gaara.

"Say, Hinata," Naruto turned to look at the girl sitting next to him. She looked up expectantly. "Are you going to eat that?" He pointed at her plate.

She blushed even more and shook her head, pushing her plate to him. Naruto grinned and gave her a half hug. "You're the best," He grinned, tucking in to his new food. He was going to need all the energy he could get if he was going to figure out how to get Sakura and Gaara together. And also to get Sasuke off his back.

Stuffing his mouth, Naruto chewed diligently, going silent as the conversation flowed around him. He was too lost in thought to contribute much.

* * *

**Thanks for reading and reviewing!**


	9. Chapter 9

**

* * *

Chapter Nine**

* * *

"Damnit," Naruto grumbled as he hastily rushed around his room trying to get ready for Wednesday's classes. He had woken up late and now had absolutely no time to get ready and be at class. He'd have to miss breakfast. Wonderful, glorious breakfast and the most amazing cafeteria he had ever had the privilege of stepping foot in. It was everything he heard about and more. So much more. So delightful. So not available right now.

"Why can't I tie a damn tie!?" Naruto said, yanking on said item of clothing. It was the downfall of all school uniforms. Ties. They were a mystery. They were intrigue. They were damn confusing. And where was Gaara to tie it for him!? Probably eating away delightedly and laughing at Naruto's misfortune.

Grumbling, Naruto slung his bag over his shoulder and raced out of the room, barely remembering to shut the door behind him, let alone lock it. He had five minutes to run to the cafeteria and grab a piece of toast, a piece of fruit, anything! Goodness help him, but he needed food. And they were closing in Four minutes. Naruto ran for his life. Three minutes. Almost there. Two - "Oof," Naruto grunted, reeling backwards.

"Naruto," A familiar voice drawled.

Naruto groaned and looked up. "Sasuke," He grumbled. Ever since Monday Naruto had been doing a fair job at avoiding the other boy. Sitting on the other side of the classroom. Surrounding himself with people at lunch. Hiding in his room... It was all very successful really. Apart from whenever Sasuke would brush by him and Naruto could have sworn he felt something touching his neck. But Sasuke's hands were perfectly in view. So, what? It thoroughly annoyed Naruto.

"You're late," He said, lips curving upwards in the smuggest expression Naruto had ever seen on another person. Honestly.

Blinking at Sasuke, Naruto could only watch as he was brushed by again, and again with the tingling, and then with the stomach rumbling and – Stomach! Naruto groaned and dashed towards the cafeteria. Only to be met with slamming doors.

"Fuck!" He yelled. This was a disaster. And he was going to be late for class at this rate.

As soon as Naruto trudged into the classroom he sat dejectedly in his seat. This was going to be the worst day ever. Basically, he didn't want to face it. First he woke up late. Then he had to deal with Sasuke. Then there was no breakfast. And above all, his damn tie was still crooked.

"You look like hell, Naruto," Kiba called from across the classroom, laughing at his misfortune.

Naruto made a rude hand gesture at him not bothering to respond. Instead, he dropped his head on the desk, pressing his cheek against the wood. He would wallow in misery all day long. He was quite determined to do so.

"Sit up," Sasuke's voice commanded him.

"No," Naruto said dejectedly.

"Yes," Sasuke insisted, pulling Naruto up by the back of his head, fist gripped in locks of blond hair.

"Ow, ow, ow," Naruto yelped, instantly sitting upright and glaring death at the other boy. "What do you want?" He asked, when he had reclaimed his hair as his own.

Sasuke ignored him. "Sit still," He commanded, crouching down so he was level with Naruto. Reaching forward, Sasuke began fixing Naruto's tie. In the end, he had to untie it completely and start anew. When it was done, he adjusted it properly and looked up at Naruto. "There, now don't sulk," Sasuke said firmly before retreating to his own seat.

Naruto stared after him dazedly. Sasuke ignored him completely. Naruto turned back to his desk and blinked, startled anew. There was an apple sitting there. Not that fruit was his favorite thing in the world, but, well, it was _food_. Not bothering to analyze the situation too deeply, Naruto took a big bite of the apple and contentedly ate his makeshift breakfast.

So, maybe, the day wasn't going to be so bad. After all, he had food now. And Sasuke wasn't... that bad. And his damn tie was on straight. Thanks to Sasuke. Naruto clenched his teeth hard, willing himself not to blush. It wasn't like he cared about the closeness between them and the intimate gesture or anything! Not at all. Naruto sunk further in his seat as he bit into his apple, staring at the teacher. He wasn't paying attention to anything that was being said, he was too lost in his own thoughts.

* * *

There was a very good reason Sasuke hated being in high school. And mostly it had to do with being very much older than all the students combined. Well, practically. But in the end, they were all immature and useless. Especially the ones that had taken to swooning after him. That was probably the most annoying habit he could think of.

Perhaps second was the classes. They were juvenile and boring. Sasuke had spent his long years rather wisely. Not only had he succumbed to pleasure, but he had also taken to reading. When you didn't sleep, there was much time to be filled.

And third, but maybe first, was Itachi.

Now that History had come again, Sasuke was stuck staring at his brother as he taught a load of simpering idiots. It was unbearable. It was torture. Sasuke shifted his gaze to Naruto instead.

Kill with kindness, was the expression, wasn't it? Sasuke could do that. Besides, it had been vaguely amusing to see the boy so startled at his actions. Sasuke had memorized those features in that moment.

Forgetting to breathe, Sasuke stared intently at Naruto's slack face, his mind obviously wandering elsewhere than Itachi's words. Sasuke could only smirk at that. It served his brother right. What was he teaching these kids? Useless nonsense. But all the more amusing that Sasuke knew Itachi had been present for most of it. History. What a laugh.

When the lesson was over, Sasuke rose smoothly from his seat, returning to the land of the aware. Looking up, he caught his brother staring at him. Sasuke flashed his teeth. Itachi smiled. Sasuke grimaced.

Most of the students were gone. Except for him. And Itachi. And Naruto. Since Sasuke had grabbed his wrist again.

"Don't make any plans for Friday," Itachi said, eyeing the pair of them.

Sasuke only kept staring, waiting for further explanation. Naruto, however, was looking puzzled. "Why?" The boy asked.

Sasuke yanked on his wrist to restrain him. It only made Naruto grumble more and stir restlessly at his side.

"We are going on a double date," Itachi smiled at the blond boy trying to wrest himself from his brother's grip.

Sasuke didn't bat an eyelash. "Holy mother of salmon! I didn't know you dated!" Naruto yelled, looking between the both of them. Supposedly it was meant to be an all-encompassing statement.

"Of course," Itachi said, sitting down at his desk and smirking at the pair. "Sasuke is very shy about his dates, after all."

This. This caused Sasuke to growl.

Naruto, however, was grinning. He poked Sasuke in the side. "Who knew someone could even tolerate you!"

Sasuke glanced down at Naruto. "Shut up," He said under his breath, before he glanced at Itachi. "I will be there," He said dismissively and pulled Naruto behind him, exiting the room.

Naruto struggled behind him for a few moments before he decided to give it up and let Sasuke drag him wherever. This was for the best. Sasuke looked a little murderous at the moment. When Naruto quickened his steps, he walked beside Sasuke and glanced up. Sasuke ignored him. They were going somewhere. Alone. He needed it after Itachi sprang that on him.

Did his brother not want his plans to succeed? Oh, of course not. Sasuke would have rolled his eyes if he were into such childish displays. As it was, he yanked Naruto into the janitor's closet and shut the door behind them. Pressing his back into the door, he observed his prey.

Naruto was looking around curiously. "What are we doing here, bastard?" Naruto asked when his eyes rested on Sasuke again.

Sasuke didn't respond. Instead, he pushed away from the door, stepping closer to Naruto, who stepped backwards. They continued until Naruto was against the wall. He was looking distinctly uncomfortable. Sasuke reached forward and stroked the broken skin of his neck.

"Don't – don't you have a date?" Naruto asked. Sasuke could feel the uncertainty of his voice. The tension in the air. It was all delicious. Sasuke breathed in deeply.

"I don't care," Sasuke said, dismissing the matter. He continued breathing in the scent in the air around them, staring intently at Naruto. How long before he broke. How long before he spoke. Sasuke smirked inwardly. This game was going to step up a notch.

"I'm not gay!" Naruto shouted after two minutes of intense staring during which he had tried to avoid eye contact, only to repeatedly come back to it. He was breathing heavily by now, Sasuke could feel his chest rising and falling against his own.

Letting out a small chuckle, Sasuke leaned in and ran his tongue along the wound on Naruto's neck. "I know," He whispered, before sinking his fangs in.

That was what he had been waiting for. The shiver of anticipation. Sasuke's eyes sank closed in bliss as he drank the boy's blood.

* * *

The closet had been cramped. And uncomfortable. Naruto wasn't at all sure if he should have been alone in there with Sasuke. In fact, he was definitely sure that he should not have been. Especially when the boy got close. And Naruto hadn't known what to do. After awhile he had to declare his intentions in case Sasuke had gotten the wrong idea. But then, then Sasuke had _licked his neck_.

Naruto couldn't remember anything after that, really. He just remembered Sasuke pulling away from him. To where they were now. He felt light headed. It must have been from the proximity of the other boy. Naruto was about to yell, when he stepped forward, stumbling slightly.

Sasuke's hands reached out and gripped Naruto's waist, tugging him against that hard chest. Mumbling, Naruto pushed against Sasuke, pulling out of his hold. "I can stand on my own thanks," Naruto said defiantly, despite swaying just a little.

When he got a good look at Sasuke, he very nearly gasped in surprise. "Sasuke!" He said, lurching forward again. Forgetting in his haste that he had just gotten away from the boy. "You're bleeding, are you hurt," Naruto's hand reached up to touch Sasuke's lip.

However, his wrist was snatched away in an iron grip before he could get close. Naruto watched dazedly as Sasuke's tongue darted out and swiped away the last of the blood on his lips. "I'm fine," He said simply.

After that, Sasuke forced Naruto to sit, since he was still unsteady on his feet. "We're going to miss class," He tried explaining after the second time he had fallen down after trying to rise. Especially as he had nearly fallen right into Sasuke's lap that time. How mortifying would that have been.

"You're unwell," Sasuke said. Pulling out his bag, he looked through its contents briefly before pulling out a bag and tossing it at Naruto. "Eat those." And then throwing him a bottle of water. "And drink that," He said, almost as if he was bored.

Naruto blinked and stared at the new objects in his lap. "So what, is this where you keep your food because you're too scared to eat in public?" Naruto asked, opening the bag and popping a chip in his mouth.

"What?" Sasuke asked.

"You never eat at lunch," Naruto waved a chip at him.

"I eat," Sasuke said calmly, gazing at Naruto. Not at the chip.

Naruto grinned widely. "You're embarrassed!" He exclaimed excitedly. "Do you eat really messy or something? You should eat better things than chips. They have fries at the cafeteria. And pizza. And ramen," Naruto sighed, basically in heaven as he reminisced over the cafeteria.

"I am not particularly messy, no," Sasuke said, leaning his back against the door. He crossed his arms over his chest and gazed impatiently at Naruto. "Eat those; stop playing."

Naruto shrugged and stuffed the chip he had been gesturing with in his mouth. He really did feel a lot better after that. And the water! Was like heaven to his mouth. He didn't know when he'd gotten so hungry and thirsty. But it felt basically amazing.

When Naruto put his hand in the bag again, he was surprised to find it empty. His stomach growled at him. Sheepishly, Naruto looked around at Sasuke. "Do you have any more?" He asked.

"No," Sasuke rose to his feet and held out a hand to Naruto.

Naruto stared at stubbornly and refused to take it.

Sasuke didn't bother to argue and simply leaned down to snatch Naruto's hand himself and yank him upwards, against Sasuke. "You can eat at lunch," He breathed on Naruto's neck. It made him shiver in a peculiar way.

"When's lunch?" Naruto asked as Sasuke opened the door. He didn't even pay attention that Sasuke was holding on to his hand.

"Now," Sasuke said.

Naruto's eyes widened and looked up at Sasuke as if he were the most brilliant person in the world. Mouth splitting in a wide grin, Naruto tugged on their clasped hands and forced Sasuke to run after him towards the cafeteria. The beautiful cafeteria. With its beautiful lunch. And delicious food. And delightful friends. He'd even make Sasuke sit next to him. And he'd force the boy to eat. Because, really, at his age he shouldn't be embarrassed to eat in public. How silly.

Naruto couldn't believe he had thought today was going to be bad day. It had been wonderful so far, right? There was food. There was a straight tie. And there was Sasuke. Funny, that.

* * *

**Thanks for reading and reviewing!**


	10. Chapter 10

* * *

**Chapter Ten  
**

* * *

It was a little funny how these things happened. Naruto wasn't quite sure when he had come to depend on Sasuke so much. They'd known each other for two weeks. Certainly he made friends fast. But this one. Weirded Naruto out. First they were mortal enemies. Then Sasuke was gay. And Naruto was not. But Sasuke was nice. And Naruto liked talking to him sometimes. Also Sasuke knew how to tie his tie.

What was a boy to do?

Swinging his legs, Naruto sat on the edge of Sasuke's bed. "So," He said into the silence. Sasuke was staring into the mirror. Definitely posing.

"Who are you going with?" Naruto asked after Sasuke didn't respond.

"A girl," Sasuke replied, touching up his hair.

It was the little things you learned about your forced-upon-you-friends that made you like them all the more. Like how Sasuke was entirely and completely vain. At least sometimes. Like right now. Naruto grinned widely and hopped off the bed. He walked up beside Sasuke and struck a pose himself. "You know, you look fine. You're fussing like a girl."

"You don't fuss nearly enough," Sasuke wrapped an arm around Naruto's waist, tugging the slightly smaller boy against his chest. Putting Naruto in front of him, Sasuke ran his hands up the boy's arms and to his hair. "This is a mess," He chided, running his fingers through the soft locks, trying to form them into something other than an unruly mass of spikes.

Naruto's breath sort of hitched in his throat and he shifted uncomfortably. "S-Sasuke," He breathed out. "We've talked about this, you know."

Leaning over his shoulder, Sasuke peered into Naruto's eyes through the mirror. "Have we?" He quirked a brow, bending his head down to lick Naruto's neck. Right over his mark.

Naruto sighed and stood there defeatedly. It occurred to him earlier that it was easier to be Sasuke's friend if he didn't argue as much about Sasuke's neck fetish. One day they'd have a serious conversation about personal boundaries though. One day. Not right now, though. Naruto didn't want to get his friend down before his big date!

The next thing Naruto knew, Sasuke was pulling away and wiping something red from his lips. Naruto took a shaky step back towards the bed. Why was he always getting lightheaded around Sasuke? It was starting to worry him. Maybe he'd have to go see a doctor. "We have," Naruto mumbled, having lost coherent track of the conversation. Flopping onto Sasuke's bed, he sprawled onto his back.

"How come you need my help, in any case? I haven't done anything for you," Naruto asked after a long bout of silence. Sasuke had asked him to come over as he prepared for his date. Naruto was fairly sure boys did not do this sort of thing. That was girls. And he was not a girl. And why did he care how Sasuke's date went or if his friend looked nice? He didn't even know who the girl was!

Sasuke leaned against the bedpost. "You have nothing better to do," He pointed out.

Naruto picked his head up and frowned at the other boy. "I have homework!"

"On a Friday?" Sasuke scoffed and looked away. He was gathering his things up now, almost ready to go.

Naruto sat up. "I could have, you never know," Naruto shrugged. "I thought I'd go see Kiba, Shikamaru and Gaara. Or maybe Hinata. I could have my own date," Naruto grinned at Sasuke. Because _this_ was what boys did. Talked about girls with each other. And Naruto did like the girl. Very much. She was sweet and cute and -

Sasuke had Naruto pinned to the bed.

"No," He breathed in Naruto's face.

Scrunching up his nose, Naruto pushed Sasuke off of him. "You have a date to get to. You're going to be late," Naruto made to get off the bed.

"I will not be late," Sasuke said, grabbing Naruto's wrist. Tugging the boy back to him, Sasuke pushed him back down on the bed. "You stay here."

Naruto was about to protest, but the last he thing he knew was Sasuke's hand approaching his neck, the searing pain, and then the black.

* * *

Elsewhere, a similar scene was happening. Only, it was slightly more hectic.

"I can't believe you didn't tell me I was going to have a date with Uchiha Sasuke!" Sakura screamed at her roommate. Ino was sitting in the middle of her bed, legs crossed beneath her and grinning like a chesire cat. She watched Sakura scramble around to find the perfect outfit to wear, arrange her hair, do her makeup, everything. Of course, Ino had been ready for ages.

"You would have panicked," Ino shrugged.

In the middle of shrugging into a nice shirt, Sakura glared at her friend. "Tell me how you accomplished this."

"Blind date," Ino shrugged again. She was mostly hoping Sakura would hurry up so they could get going. Itachi would be severely angry if they were late. It had only ever happened once for Ino. That had been enough. Not that it hadn't been pleasurable too. Ino paused to weigh her options while Sakura tugged on a skirt and began brushing her hair.

"He'll hate me," Sakura moaned as she stared at her reflection. She was practically ready, she just needed a few last minute touches.

"Who will?" Ino asked. "Sasuke?" She said lightly. "Or someone else?"

Sakura paused and whirled around to face her roommate. "Sasuke!" She said, despite the flush of her cheek and flash of green eyes in her head. "What will he think to have to be _forced_ to go out with me?" Sakura turned back to the mirror.

"He should feel lucky," Ino stood up. "Are you ready?"

"Yes," Sakura said, turning this way and that before declaring herself perfect. It had only taken an hour. She was getting faster at this sort of thing.

* * *

Dating was not particularly high on either Uchihas' lists of things to do. Really. As soon as Sasuke had arrived at Itachi's, there was nothing to say. He hadn't even asked for the name of his date. All that happened was: Sasuke stared at Itachi; Itachi stared at Sasuke.

The doorbell rang ten minutes later and Itachi excused himself from the unblinking staring match to answer the door. Pulling it open, he gracefully took Ino's hand and had her nestled against his chest quite quickly.

As for Sakura. She stood there slightly awkwardly. Sasuke's eyes had drifted upwards after a minute, supposing he should find out who his brother had condemned him to spend an evening with. It could have been a very productive evening with his own blond. However, Itachi had other plans for him. Sasuke often wondered why he hadn't killed his brother yet.

Particularly now. When his eyes alighted on the pink haired girl, he dismissed her easily, returning his intense gaze to Itachi.

"Be nice, little brother," Itachi chided, raising his head from where he had been sucking on Ino's neck. It was disgusting.

Promptly turning on his heel, Sasuke walked towards Sakura. He paused at her side and held out his arm. "Shall we?" He asked, voice devoid of emotion.

"Yes," Sakura said in a small voice, glancing helplessly at Ino before Sasuke was whisking her away. Itachi and Ino trailed at a more leisurely pace.

It would be an interesting night, to say the least.

* * *

When Naruto came to, he was still in Shikamaru and Sasuke's room. This time, though. There were lots of people around him. Blinking, Naruto sat up awkwardly, feeling his head spin. He pressed a hand to the side of his head, and squinted at everyone: Shikamaru, Gaara, Kiba, Temari, Hinata, and another boy he didn't know. But he was separate from the rest of them.

"What are you guys doing here?" Naruto asked, disrupting their conversation. No one had noticed he was awake yet.

Eyes turned up to him. Naruto smiled shakily. "Hi?" He said. They all looked serious. At least, until Kiba grinned back at him.

"Good morning, sunshine," Kiba snickered. "Plan to sleep all evening, or have you decided to grace us with your presence?"

Naruto threw a pillow at him.

"Don't be an ass," Temari punched him in the shoulder.

Feeling a weight settle on the bed next to him, Naruto looked up into Hinata's eyes. "Are y-you feeling ok-kay, Naruto?" Hinata asked in a small voice. Timidly, she reached forward to feel his forehead.

"I feel fine!" Naruto assured her. Though, he didn't do much to make her shift her hand. This was the sort of attention he was supposed to get. From a girl. That wasn't a close friend. Or a boy. You know, as was normal. Naruto was fairly sure he preferred this. Scratch that. He was definitely sure.

Hinata smiled at him and retracted her hand.

"Hinata," The strange boy called.

All eyes focused on him. Kiba's were narrowed in ire. Shikamaru merely interested. Temari looked like she was considering an option. And Gaara glanced for a moment before returning to intensely staring at Naruto.

"You don't want to catch his illness if he has one," He simply finished and returned to ignoring everyone else.

In the middle of obediently rising to her feet, Kiba leapt to his and pointed a finger at Neji. "Just what do you think you are doing, you bl-"

"Kiba," Gaara growled.

"Blooming idiot," Kiba finished lamely, glaring at Gaara. Temari snickered.

"I was looking for Sasuke," The boy shrugged.

"Who are you?" Naruto asked, butting into the conversation.

"This is N-Neji," Hinata answered for him. "We're related," Hinata lowered her head.

That, at least, Naruto could understand. Even if he was too disoriented to understand the rest of the goings on. "Uzumaki Naruto," Naruto said, having stood up to approach Neji, holding out his hand.

"I know," Neji replied, glancing briefly at the offered hand before raising his eyes back up to Naruto's face.

Letting his hand drop, Naruto adopted a petulant look. "No wonder you're here for Sasuke. You're as bad as he is," Naruto scoffed and turned around to sit back on the bed. He missed Neji's amused smirk.

"Sit next to me, Hinata," Naruto called, making the girl blush. "If I get sick, you can cure me no problem, I'm sure."

Everyone else had gone back to their own conversation. Naruto wasn't going to question why they were here, so long as it benefited him. He was more than happy to have company. Company that didn't involve an annoying, molesting friend. That was always nice. And having Hinata sitting next to him, Naruto could feel her warmth all along his side. It sort of made him tingle. Smiling goofily, Naruto threw himself into the conversation they were all having. About school and homework and generic stuff like that. Naruto got the idea it wasn't what they'd been talking about before, but he wasn't one to press the matter.

* * *

When the hour grew later, people drifted away naturally as they got tired to sleep in their own beds.

Shikamaru excused himself as he had to lead Temari away who was leaning dangerously on him, half asleep. Which left only Naruto. And Neji. The boy had not moved all night, had not conversed, only observed.

Naruto hadn't moved much from Sasuke's bed. Now he was lying on his back working up the energy to get up and move. "I should go," Naruto mumbled, feeling sleep pull at him.

"It would be best for you if you stayed," Neji murmured, fluidly rising to his feet.

Naruto frowned at this, and attempted to stand. A hand on his chest prevented him. "Sasuke will want to tell you about his date," Neji's smile was anything but friendly.

If he wasn't so tired, Naruto was absolutely certain he'd be more freaked out about this occurrence. As it was, he was bloody exhausted and closing his eyes sounded amazing. He didn't even hear the door close as he drifted off to sleep.

* * *

**Thanks for reading and reviewing!**


	11. Chapter 11

* * *

**Chapter Eleven**

* * *

There were times when Sasuke couldn't quite recall just why he listened to his brother at all. There were many times. They were quite often. Very frequently of late. Perhaps every other second. Gradually increasing to every second as he had to sit there at the dinner table. And listen to Ino prattle. And suffer through Sakura sending him 'discrete' glances. But most especially have to watch his brother seemingly hang on the daft girl's every pathetic word as if it were the most interesting thing to him.

It wasn't.

So why did he listen? Sasuke didn't really have much of a choice in the matter. In addition to Itachi's commanding presence, there was that small seed within Sasuke to just.. obey. It grated on his every nerve. No matter how Sasuke protested, it went against his very being to disregard Itachi's requests. It couldn't be done. Not anymore.

Shifting his eyes away from the scene, Sasuke stared at the window. They had come to some restaurant. And what for? Itachi was a cruel man. He would be forced to eat in front of the humans. Human food. Sasuke picked at his plate in disgust.

"Are you not hungry?" Sakura's voice washed over his wanderings. She had scooted her chair closer. She was looking at him with concern.

Sasuke could not have cared less. "No, I already ate," He smirked, eyes flicking to her briefly before moving back to the window. And he had. Not from her. From something much sweeter. Much more delicious.

"Oh," Sakura said. Sasuke could hear the disappointment.

"You're no fun at all, Sasuke," Ino's annoying voice said. She was currently playing with the ponytail of Itachi's hair.

Itachi smirked and gently removed her hand, placing it in his lap. "Eat, Sasuke," Itachi murmured, raising his own fork to his lips.

Sasuke watched in disgust as Itachi forced the steak down his mouth. At least it was bloody. Rare. Sasuke looked down at his salad. Unappetizing. He nibbled on a piece of lettuce. "Are you happy now?" He asked, proceeding to ignore everything.

"No," Itachi said, leaning back in his chair. "You're sulking and it's making your date upset," Itachi's voice was catching a dangerous tone. "Which is in turn making my date upset." More dangerous by the second. "Which is making me upset. Very upset."

Sakura was blushing now and held up her hands. "It's okay," She tried to say. Sasuke could feel her nervousness. She very well should be. Itachi was not one to be around when he got like this.

Ino, surprisingly, looked bored. She tugged on Itachi's hair and leaned up to bite his earlobe. Sasuke didn't bother trying to listen to the words she whispered in his ear.

When Itachi had mentioned this double date, Sasuke had had no positive opinion about it. It was all that girl's fault. She was trying to set her friend up. Sasuke understood. But what she did not understand, was that Sasuke was not a toy to push around as you pleased. Oh, no. He would not fit in to their desires for him. It would go quite the opposite.

Rising from his chair, Sasuke held his hand out to Sakura. "Come with me," He said, fastening his eyes on her.

She swallowed and nodded, setting down her fork and patting her napkin against her mouth. Standing up, she laid her hand in his. His grip was very firm.

"We'll be back," Sasuke said, before leading Sakura away from the table, winding through the restaurant. He could feel Itachi's smirk on his back.

It didn't take them long to reach the outside. Sasuke glanced around. It was too open. He began walking with her a ways down the sidewalk. Ah, there. He found a convenient place located between two buildings, hiding them from easy public view.

"What are we - " Sakura tried to say before Sasuke clamped a hand over her mouth.

"You will listen to me," Sasuke said in a low voice, body pressed close to hers, against the wall. "I do not like you. I do not want to be here with you. I have no intentions of pursuing a relationship with you. You can work through Itachi all you like, but I will never want you. Cry if you want, it is not going to help you," Sasuke worked through his speech, his voice passionless.

Sakura's eyes were wide. When Sasuke's hand lowered from her mouth, she wasn't sure what to say. Sasuke leaned against the other wall of the alley and observed her. She seemed to be having an inner battle.

It took her two whole minutes to come up with: "I don't want you either!"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow.

"I thought I did," Sakura fidgeted. "But I think... I like someone else," She finished. Sasuke could see her shoulders slump.

"I see," Sasuke said. He stepped forward and took her hand again. Simple, easy, effective. "We should go back," He said, leading her along.

"It was a nice speech, though. I was terrified," Sakura finally said right before they entered the restaurant.

Sasuke smirked. "I know you were."

* * *

After that, the date had been very simple. Sasuke had stared out the window. Sakura had sat lost in thought. Itachi and Ino had flirted shamelessly. It was a wonder they did so openly. Their relationship was not particularly... legal. Sasuke could only assume that was the reason they had had to drive so far from the school.

Now, however, was another matter entirely. Sasuke had excused himself from the drive home and opted to walk. To run. It didn't matter. It was the night.

When he was finally beginning to approach the school some time later, well into the early hours of the morning, Sasuke's cell phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID: Itachi. Flipping it open, he pressed the phone to his ear. "They've found another."

Closing the phone, Sasuke stared up at the sky. The stars were coming out. They would light his way.

A stray breeze brought the scent to his nose and Sasuke was off, headed towards the site. This was the reason Itachi had called him, after all. Finally, there was something to do in this mind numbingly boring school. Sasuke would have smirked if he didn't have a mask of calm on at the moment. He was approaching the assembled people.

Stepping forward, he broke through the throng. "Fall back," He said quietly, squatting down to examine what they had found.

She was a girl. About 15 years old. Her neck was torn open. Her heart had stopped. Sasuke had seen the like before. When a vampire couldn't control their thirst. When they couldn't stop drinking. It was usually the new ones. They let themselves go too long between drinks. By then they couldn't stop themselves, couldn't pull away, the call was too strong.

This was the reason for rules. For the Vampire Hunters. Sasuke hated these people.

The area smelled like blood. Some of the assembled were growing restless. Sasuke rose to his feet and dismissed them. They weren't of any use here. This had been done some time ago. The scent had drifted.

Raising his eyes, Sasuke met the fierce gaze of Gaara. "Where were you?"

"Accounted for," Sasuke said lazily.

"What did you do to Naruto? He was passed out on your bed! I'm going to - " Kiba's threat was cut off by Temari hitting him upside the head.

"What did I do to him?" Sasuke repeated, allowing himself to smirk. "I could show you..." His voice lowered as he advanced on the enraged boy.

"Troublesome," Shikamaru sighed and stepped between them.

Sasuke paused and regarded his roommate. "We have more important things to discuss, I should think," Sasuke said, returning to the business at hand.

"This is the third," Gaara said, bending over the bed. He was trailing a finger through the blood, making designs. It would have been a disturbing sight to see, if this were not Sasuke we were considering.

"A new one," Sasuke voiced. "Good luck hunting," He smiled humorlessly and disappeared from the scene.

"Aren't you going to help!?" Kiba's voice cut across the lawn.

* * *

Having landed not far away, Sasuke was still considering the scene. New vampires were hard to detect. They did not smell the same as older vampires. This was the very reason they were required to be registered. If the Organization had sent these baby vampire hunters to this school, it meant they didn't know who the newling was. This made Sasuke's job all the more annoying.

"I met him," A dark voice cut across his musings.

"Did you," Sasuke said, eyes still intent on the body on the ground. They were moving her now. This was a particular matter. The police would not be involved. They would never even know. This would go away.

"He is pleasant," The voice continued, conversationally.

A weight settled on the branch next to him. Sasuke was not overly fond of sitting in trees. They were just convenient. "Kind of you to say so, Neji," Sasuke did not even need to turn his head to identify the newcomer. He had known long before.

"I am aware," Neji replied.

Both of them watched as the body was dragged away, along with the bickering vampire hunters. They didn't speak. There was much to think of. Sasuke had taken in the girl's scent. It was a small chance, but if he could another student that smelled like her, he would know. That would be the end of this. And he could leave. Forget all his other plans. Sasuke wanted _out_.

"Are you going to stay out here all night?" Neji spoke again after half an hour. Sasuke felt him rise to his feet.

"Hm," Sasuke replied.

"As you wish," Neji inclined his head. He made to leap. But not before one last remark. "Keep him away from my descendant, won't you?"

* * *

It was a long time before Sasuke bothered to return to his room. There was the sleeping form of his roommate, obviously already come back from the late night intrigue. But better yet, there was the sleeping form of a blond in his bed. And this blond he could handle.

Carefully perching next to Naruto, Sasuke smirked down at him. He had stayed. Somehow, he had decided to remain. Sasuke knew full well that Naruto would have awoken at some point and had the option of leaving. He considered it a small victory that Naruto had gone nowhere. This was a matter of import, after all. It meant things were progressing. It meant that so long as he had to remain at this detestable place he had entertainment.

This blond boy. It would have been amusing how it happened, except that Sasuke was not one for amusement. He had made this happen. The boy irritated him to no end, resisted far too much. Sasuke was crumbling down Naruto's walls, but it was taking far longer than he had ever expected. He would need to find new pieces to put into play. This infantile obsession with sexual orientation was wearing at Sasuke's nerves.

Naruto shifted in his sleep, muttering words to himself. They suspiciously sounded like "Cafeteria." And "Good."

And yet, he was fun to play with. Sasuke did not need to spend time considering what that meant. It meant he had an interesting toy. There was nothing else there to his emotions. There really was not much point in reading further into them. Sasuke did not have emotions. He was empty and incapable of feeling. Well, apart from lust.

Leaning forward, Sasuke had meant full well to take advantage of his prey, sleeping so casually in his bed, when. He caught smell of something. Something very unpleasant. Particularly loathsome, in fact.

There was another scent there. A scent not belonging to Naruto. And not to Shikamaru. And most definitely not to Sasuke.

It was female.

"Oh, Neji," Sasuke whispered into the dark, reaching out to stroke Naruto's cheek. "She is on dangerous grounds."

* * *

**Thanks for Reading and Reviewing! They mean a lot.**


	12. Chapter 12

* * *

**Chapter Twelve  
**

* * *

First thing Monday morning found an interesting new development. Naruto skidded into the classroom just barely on time. His tie was askew and he was holding toast he'd snatched from the cafeteria in his hand. It had obviously been a rough morning. At the very least, the teacher wasn't there yet. Sighing in relief, Naruto ran a hand through his hair, adjusted his bag and began walking towards his seat near the back.

A few steps in. Back up. Rewind. What was _that_?

A quite.. intriguing sight met Naruto's eyes. Sitting in the front row of class was Sasuke. Who usually sat in the back with Naruto. But perhaps more importantly, Hinata was there too. Where she usually sat. And they were.. conversing. Naruto tilted his head to the side and blinked. Because he was fairly sure they hated each other. Or rather, Sasuke was not fond of Hinata. Whenever Sasuke had taken to invading his personal space at lunch it was to squeeze himself between Naruto and Hinata, cutting off all Naruto's contact with the girl. Suffice to say, the message was loud and clear.

So... why?

_And was that a smile_?

Naruto sort of gaped and dropped his bag on the ground as he watched their interaction, morbidly fascinated. If he was planning something! Naruto would take care of it.

"Stop gaping like an idiot," Sasuke's curt voice cut through his inner confusion.

Jerking his head up, Naruto adopted a petulant look. "I wasn't gaping," He spat and picked up his bag, stalking towards the back of the classroom.

What did he care if Sasuke sat at the front and talked to Hinata with more expression than he'd ever used on Naruto through their whole of their difficult and trying and basically awful friendship? Not at all. That was how much he cared! In fact! Naruto stuck his tongue out at Sasuke's back. Good riddance. But how was he supposed to save Hinata? She was blushing! And they were awfully close!

Grumbling to himself, Naruto crumpled up a piece of paper and tried to throw it at Sasuke's head.

...Only to have it bounce of Sakura instead.

Ducking, Naruto flushed bright red and pretended to be getting something from his bag. No one had noticed that right? When he finally deemed it safe to look around again, Sakura was looking disgruntled. But Sasuke was staring right at him, a smirk on his face. A smirk! And not a smile. Oh, no. Not like he'd smiled at Hinata.

Wait a moment.

Naruto's mouth opened widely as Sasuke slowly turned back to his conversation partner. Because now he understood! Everything was _perfectly_ clear. How could he have not seen it before? All the intimidation, the attempt at friendliness, the anger, the separation, the woe. It was all for a very simple and easily explainable reason. Naruto was actually quite proud of himself for coming up with it. Really, it was particularly amazing, and he'd couldn't believe he hadn't seen it before. It kind of made him feel a little warm and fuzzy inside. To think Sasuke had any sort of feelings at all...

Obviously, Naruto was going to have to treat this new situation delicately. Now that he understood and he knew what was going on. Of course, he was a little confused, but he was willing to make it work. Naruto wanted Sasuke to be happy, after all! It was an odd feeling, where that had come from. But Naruto cared about his friends, so he wasn't too concerned. He just wanted to do everything in his power for the black haired boy.

Smiling to himself, Naruto began drafting out a plan in his notebook, completely ignoring the lesson that was now underway.

Because what Naruto had realized, was that Sasuke liked Hinata.

* * *

"Have you ever tried to get anyone together?" Naruto asked, slouching in an armchair in the lounge. There weren't too many people here. It was a Monday. There was homework to be done. Naruto, of course, was ignoring his.

"No," Kiba scoffed, throwing Naruto a look like the boy was crazy.

Rolling her eyes, Temari aimed a smack at Kiba's head. "That's because no one would ever listen to your advice, moron," Temari said scathingly before turning her attention to Naruto. "Who are you trying to get together?"

"Oh," Naruto paused. Should he share? Technically, he had two different couples he needed to help out. Because otherwise how were they supposed to realize their love for one another? "You're not going to tell, are you?" Naruto asked, peering around.

"Of course not," Temari said, giving Kiba a significant look.

"Yeah, yeah," Kiba waved his hand, flipping open a magazine. He was bored with the conversation already.

No one else was really within hearing range, so Naruto figured he could talk to Temari about it. It might be easier with a girl, after all. They could work together. And she was nice. Shrugging, Naruto hopped off his chair and sat next to her on the couch so they could scheme together.

* * *

Tuesday morning went quite similarly to Monday morning. Except, Naruto had made it to breakfast on time. He'd set his alarm _extra_ early. There were things to be done, after all! Like make sure everyone sat according to the arranged seats he'd given them the night before. Well, except for the involved parties, after all.

It would have gone so swimmingly. If only Sasuke had shown up...

But now, Naruto was running to class again, having gone back to his room because he'd forgotten his bag. And his tie was askew again. When he walked into the classroom, Naruto was ready for the sight that awaited him. It was wonderful, fabulous, completely according to plan. He grinned as he walked by Sasuke talking to Hinata.

That is, he would have walked by if a hand hadn't snatched his wrist. "Come here, idiot," Sasuke's voice was quieter than usual as he yanked Naruto towards his desk. "When are you going to learn to do this yourself?" He questioned.

Naruto just fidgeted. This was not according to plan. Sasuke's fingers kept tickling his neck. "Why should I learn when you just do it for me," Naruto shot back, looking quite proud of himself. Glancing at Hinata, who was watching them interact, Naruto grinned at her. "Hey," He greeted.

She smiled, blushed and didn't say anything as she looked down at her desk. Naruto was too busy watching her to notice the change in Sasuke's eyes. He did, however, notice the jerk on his tie, tugging his whole body downwards, lest he choke.

Now that Naruto was staring straight into Sasuke's black eyes, he swallowed nervously. "Sasuke," He started to say, but cut off.

"All set," Sasuke's breath whispered across his face as Naruto was released from his grip.

Straightening himself out, Naruto shot a poorly conceived glare at Sasuke. "Bastard," He mumbled before walking back to his seat. And no, he didn't miss the way Sasuke immediately turned to Hinata to talk to her. This time, though, he wasn't quite as happy about it as before.

* * *

The rest of the week was surprisingly uneventful. Naruto was beginning to suspect that Sasuke was avoiding him. Apart from every morning when Sasuke fixed his tie. Other than that though, Sasuke was usually whisking Hinata away somewhere. Naruto didn't even get to speak to her. They sat alone together at lunch. They sat together in class. Naruto even suspected they studied together.

"Maybe they don't need our help," Naruto twirled his fork in his fingers, staring at the couples back during lunch on Friday.

Temari kicked him under the table. "You're hopeless," She muttered.

Naruto frowned and dropped his fork to look at her. "What?" He asked.

She shook her head and shot him a pointed look.

"You two would make a good couple," Kiba grinned at them from across the table. "You have your own language and everything," He barked a laugh.

This made Gaara raise his head. "No, Naruto," He said, before returning to staring out the window, the things on his plate untouched.

Scoffing, Naruto reached out and stole Gaara's dessert. "No offense, love," Naruto said to Temari before glaring at Gaara. "But I don't want to date your sister."

Temari smirked. "Oh, but why not?" She leaned close to him, pressing herself against his side.

Naruto squirmed and got out from under her. "You'll give me _cooties_ like that," Naruto said, laughing as he acted childishly.

Having looked up to see what the fuss was, Shikamaru just shook his head and laid back down to sleep. Temari blushed.

Naruto grinned. Matchmaking was fun.

"I don't know why you want to get them together," Sakura spoke, picking at her salad. After about a day, it had come out about Naruto's intentions towards Sasuke and Hinata. "They don't really fit together." And now everyone was involved in the plan. At least no one else knew about his other couple he had in mind.

Eyeing Sakura, Naruto smiled. "And who do you fit with?"

Naruto could have sworn her cheeks got a little pink. "I don't fit with anyone!" She said vehemently. Naruto snickered. Gaara looked away from the window back to the table. Sakura definitely blushed. Temari narrowed her eyes. Kiba ate. Shikamaru slept.

"'Course not," Naruto shrugged and hopped up. "But if those two don't fit together, I want to know what they're talking about," He said, before stalking towards the pair sitting together.

Acting quite nonchalant about the whole thing, Naruto casually strolled over once he got closer and casually sat down, casually leaning his elbow on the table, casually glancing at the pair of them, casually acting surprised to see them there. "Oh, hey," Naruto grinned, looking quite mischievous despite himself.

"H-hi," Hinata stuttered, seeming to shrink in upon herself.

Sasuke raised his eyebrows and leaned forward, imperceptibly moving away from Hinata. "Naruto," His voice sounded far too much like a caress. "What can we do for you?" Sasuke asked.

Shrugging, Naruto just kept grinning. "Nothing."

"Then leave," Sasuke said abruptly leaning back. He didn't bother to look at Naruto again.

Hinata looked like she wanted to say something, but Sasuke laying his hand on the table in front of him paused her speech. She shrunk even further away from both of them.

The whole interaction made Naruto uneasy. Sure, Sasuke was a bastard to him. Naruto got that. But that was because Naruto was also a _boy_. Sasuke shouldn't be treating Hinata like that! Especially if he fancied her. Which Naruto wasn't completely convinced he didn't. Look how they acted! Completely inseparable for a whole week. That was not the behavior of casual acquaintances.

"Are you dating?" Naruto blurted out, unsure if he could really contain himself anymore.

Hinata immediately blushed a dark red and tried to speak but nothing came out.

As for Sasuke, his smirk only grew. Training his gaze on Naruto, Sasuke's arm slowly descended around Hinata's shoulder, pulling her close. "Why is it that you would like to know, Naruto?" Sasuke asked calmly.

Looking extremely uncomfortable, Naruto rose to his feet. "I was just curious. You can.. you can both date whoever you like," Naruto forced himself to smile and look nonchalant.

Really, he'd been so excited. Naruto was ecstatic to learn that Sasuke had feelings for someone. Perhaps he was a little disappointed to discover who, since he really enjoyed Hinata's company as well. But... He had been willing to sacrifice his own happiness to see Sasuke happy. Surely! That's what friends did. Even friends who had a twisted form of friendship wherein one of them was prone to -

Hey!

Naruto blinked. Stopped. Came to a halt. Turned around.

"YOU BASTARD!" Naruto yelled just before he punched Sasuke in the face. It landed quite nicely on his jaw, causing the other boy to jerk around awkwardly.

Cradling his fist to his chest, Naruto glared at Sasuke, gaze Hinata an apologetic look before stalking away. "I hope you two are blissfully happy together!" Naruto called across the whole cafeteria. Just so that everyone could know what was going on between them. And that Sasuke was a bastard.

Not that Naruto particularly knew why he had had to punch Sasuke. It was a bit confusing in his mind at the moment. Thinking about them as a couple. It sort of made Naruto's insides twist up in complete and utter confusion. That is, the confusion of a completely straight and normal teenage boy. And nothing else. At all. Whatsoever.

* * *

**Thanks for Reading and Reviewing! They mean a lot to me, and I hope to have all your questions answered as the story unfolds, I promise. **


	13. Chapter 13

* * *

**Chapter Thirteen**

* * *

As the case was turning out to be, Friday evenings were quite busy at this school.

Currently, Naruto was curled up in his blankets in his own bed having the most delightful dreams about food and sitting in the cafeteria, his one true love. Thus, he was rather absorbed in sleep and not all that aware of the outside world. Had he been a lighter sleeper, he might have noticed the presence of someone else in the room. Someone not his roommate.

He might also have noticed the creak of his bed as someone sat next to him. And the hand that descended to cover his mouth.

Well. Naruto did notice that one. After a moment. When it was accompanied by a breath in his ear. "Wake up," A dark voice commanded him.

Ripped unceremoniously from his beautiful dreams, Naruto's mind was rather hazy as he processed the situation. When he was aware of someone else's presence and a hand over his mouth, Naruto went completely still. He squeezed his eyes shut and tensed his whole body. Oh god, he was going to be killed.

"Open your eyes," The voice commanded again.

Naruto shook his head furiously. He would not give in to the terrorist!

"Damnit, idiot, open your eyes."

Hey, that voice sounded kind of familiar. Peering out of the corner of his eye, Naruto let his eyes adjust to the dark before he could make out the figure in front of him. Oh, great. Just perfect. Definitely he was expecting this one.

Growling, Naruto pushed the hands away from him and sat up in his bed. "What are you doing here, bastard?" Naruto asked, shoving Sasuke off the bed. When it was free of unwanted intruders, Naruto flopped back down and buried himself in the blankets, hiding his head underneath.

"Come, we are going for a walk," Sasuke's voice broke into Naruto's forced state of sleepiness. Not like he was going to go back to sleep now. Especially since Sasuke had ripped his blankets away, despite Naruto clutching to them.

"Why," Naruto whined, glancing at the clock. "It's three in the morning, I'm sleepy." Really, he hadn't been asleep all that long. He didn't want to be up.

"We need to talk," Sasuke said calmly, as he grabbed Naruto by his upper arm and yanked him from his bed, dragging him towards the door.

"Agh," Naruto groaned, trying to put up some form of resistance that wasn't exactly working too swell. Glancing around his room helplessly, Naruto's eyes caught onto his roommate's. "Gaara, save me!" Naruto pleaded as Sasuke was tugging him through the doorway. "I'm being kidnapped!"

Pleading to Gaara was really rather a lost cause. The boy just stared at Naruto and tilted his head. "He won't harm you," Gaara's voice reassured him just as the door was closing behind Naruto.

Some help that had been.

Now that Naruto was outside his room, Sasuke was forcing him to stand upright. "I'm not going to carry you," Was all he said before his hand slid down to Naruto's wrist and began tugging him towards their destination.

Grumbling, Naruto tried to be as resilient as possible the whole way. "Can we talk in the morning, maybe?" No. "Can I at least put some decent clothes on?" No. "Can I use the bathroom?" No. "Can I get a snack?" No. "Can I get some shoes?" No. "Can I take a shower?" No. "Can I have a puppy?" Really, no.

The questions ventured on and on as Sasuke dragged Naruto through the halls of their school building. Right up until the moment they were about to step outside.

"Hey, Sasuke," Naruto said, voice changed from his incessant nagging. "Let's walk indoors," Naruto suggested, fidgeting uncomfortably. He had just about accepted his lot in life and was more than willing to follow Sasuke around in the dead of the night – so long as they stayed indoors.

Lifting an eyebrow, Sasuke regarded Naruto, one hand on the doorknob. "Why?"

It was a reasonable question. Naruto was almost certain of that. But. He wasn't going to answer it properly. Naruto just shrugged and adopted a grin. "I'm not exactly dressed for the outside, am I?"

Regarding the other boy, Sasuke nodded after a moment. Dropping Naruto's wrist, Sasuke slowly slid out of his thin, black sweater. This would have been the opportune moment to run away, but Naruto had been too busy staring suspiciously to make any moves. Thus, he found himself with a new sweater on and his wrist firmly taken ahold of again.

"There," Sasuke said, and pushed the door open, taking Naruto through with no other qualms.

Sighing, Naruto sped up his pace so he was actually walking next to Sasuke this time. A little closer than would be expected normally. His gaze kept drifting about. It was dark. The grounds were not well lit. His eyes kept focusing on all the dark shadows. His body would shift closer to Sasuke's. Unconsciously, his free hand began running up and down the new fabric on his arms. The fabric that didn't belong to him. Didn't smell like him.

For a long time, they walked on in silence. It was actually quite killing Naruto. Because now that they were outside and he'd run out of excuses as to why they should go back, he had nothing else to do but think. Since Sasuke wasn't talking or anything. Now Naruto could focus on just what this was about! Why would Sasuke want to call him out in the middle of the night? Surely he should be focusing on his new girlfriend. Naruto grimaced and stepped away from Sasuke.

Somewhere in the distance Naruto was sure he heard a twig snap. He flinched and looked at the ground, planting his feet. "What do you want, Sasuke?" Naruto asked the ground.

"You seem to have gotten the wrong impression," Sasuke said. Naruto couldn't see his face, so he couldn't tell if Sasuke was angry or amused. His voice never really betrayed these types of emotions. But his eyes did sometimes. It was so easy to tell, Naruto wondered why no one else could.

"Of what?" Naruto asked.

"I don't want anything. Not from this place." Naruto raised his head to look at Sasuke. He was looking up at the sky. Naruto frowned and looked up too. The night sky was so vast and sparkling with lights. But still, it was dark. The moon was only a sliver.

"Then we can go back inside," Naruto said, hoping beyond hope.

"No," Sasuke's lips twitched upwards as his gaze returned to Naruto. "I do not wish to go inside. Spend the evening with me," Sasuke murmured, tugging Naruto closer to him and bringing the boy into his embrace.

Naruto instinctively struggled to get away, but Sasuke's hands were firmly enclosing him. "No; let me go," Naruto mumbled against Sasuke's chest. "Spend the evening with Hinata," Naruto sounded more petulant than he strictly wanted to be.

This really only caused Sasuke to chuckle. "She isn't worth my time anymore. I have dealt with her. She served her purpose," Sasuke shrugged and clutched Naruto closer.

If that was supposed to appease Naruto.. Sasuke was sorely mistaken! It only made Naruto more irate. "What do you mean she served her purpose!?" Naruto yelled, jerking as far back as he could away from Sasuke so he could properly glare at the boy. "She is not an object! She's my friend, and if you broke her heart, I'm going to kill you!" Naruto huffed, irate with Sasuke. Always! He was always doing these things. It had to stop. He couldn't keep getting away with things like this. Naruto would set him straight, he would.

"We were not romantic," Sasuke said disinterestedly. "I have no romantic feelings for anyone."

"Then let me go," Naruto insisted, struggling to turn around in Sasuke's grip so he had a better chance of escaping.

But really, it only led his back being pressed into Sasuke's chest and less room between them. "No," Sasuke whispered in his ear, leaning down to lick his neck. At the point where his skin just wouldn't heal right. Naruto kept meaning to go to the nurse about it, but he was always forgetting. It didn't seem to be dire, so he could afford to wait. Apart from when Sasuke kept sucking on it like he did.

"Stop," Naruto said weakly. He was overcome with strange emotions and overwhelming tiredness. It was all too easy to let his knees go weak and allow Sasuke to hold him up. "I don't fancy you," Naruto whimpered. Sasuke's tongue was.. doing things to him. He was very sure of it.

"Have you ever considered the possibility of intimacy without emotions?" Sasuke's flat voice was whispering in his ear.

Naruto shook his head. "I think that's rubbish," He said, trying to push away from Sasuke again. "Now let me go, you ass." Had there been a moment there when Naruto had _actually_ considered enjoying the situation he was in? Of course not. Because Sasuke was not the type of person you let yourself fancy. Even if Naruto were gay. Which he was not. So it didn't even matter. Sasuke was his friend. Not a lover. For goodness sake.

Surprisingly, Naruto felt the arms around him release. Stepping away from Sasuke, Naruto turned around to glare. "Listen, I think we need to have a serious talk about this."

Sasuke was gazing at Naruto, head slightly tilted.

"We're friends," Naruto said.

Sasuke lifted his eyebrows.

"And _friends_," Naruto stressed the word. "Don't do this sort of shit."

Sasuke smirked.

"Now! I'm going back to bed, have your stupid sweater," Naruto tugged the thing off his shoulders and threw it Sasuke, before stomping away. Couldn't even have a decent conversation with the bastard. Always with the smirking and the eyebrows and the not talking and the heated glances and discrete touches and the breathing on his ear and. Naruto hated him!

Except now Naruto was stalking across the school grounds in the middle of the night in a very dark patch surrounded by intimidating looking trees. Half naked. Of course, Naruto wasn't _scared_ or anything. Don't be ridiculous. But – what was that sound?!

Naruto spun around. Only to be faced by oppressive darkness. Grumbling, Naruto tried to focus on the school and only the school as he walked back. It would be fine. The only idiot out here was Sasuke. The evil, devil spawn that he was.

When Naruto reached the entrance to the school he sighed in relief and stepped inside.

What greeted him, however, wasn't as wonderful as he would have expected. "What took you so long?" Sasuke asked in annoyance. Not waiting for an answer, Sasuke reached out and grabbed Naruto's wrist, dragging him back towards the dormitories.

* * *

The week's experiment had been a complete success. After Naruto awoke in his bed for the second time, Sasuke had decided to try a new tactic. One that suited his needs quite well. It had worked better than expected to be honest. After Sasuke dropped Naruto back off in his room, Sasuke slowly walked to his own. He didn't need to sleep, so there was no rush. There was plenty of time to think and to review the situation.

A whole week spent in the company of the Hyuuga girl had tried and tested Sasuke's patience many a time. Perhaps he had moved too swiftly this evening. It didn't matter. At least he'd gotten a bite. It had been far too long since he'd tasted Naruto's blood.

Stepping into his room, Sasuke quietly closed the door next to him. Picking up the book he was reading, he settled onto his bed and flipped a page. The seconds ticked by.

"Uchiha," Ah, there was the interrogation Sasuke had come to expect.

"Nara," Sasuke's voice was tinged with amusement. This game was getting interesting, wasn't it?

"The council has a message for you."

More and more interesting by the second. Sasuke didn't respond to Shikamaru's statement. Instead, he turned the page of his book again.

"You had better do something about that mark," Shikamaru's voice drifted across the room in a quiet warning.

So that was what this was about. Sasuke placed a finger between the pages and closed the book carefully. He turned his head to gaze at Shikamaru. "Oh, I plan to," His lips turned upwards, his fangs showing.

Shikamaru's eyes narrowed. Sasuke would expect nothing less of the boy. If anyone knew what was going on here, it would be him. Luckily, Sasuke still had a few tricks up his sleeve.

* * *

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	14. Chapter 14

* * *

**Chapter Fourteen**

* * *

There was something very wrong going on here.

Naruto's alarm had gone off several minutes ago, but he just couldn't bring himself to get out of bed. What was so great about Monday mornings, anyhow? He could just have a lie in and never go to class and not have to face the rest of the school. But really, one student in particular.

Just once Naruto wanted to have a normal and confusion free weekend. Wouldn't that be amazing? Of course it would. But it just wasn't going to happen, was it? Of course it wasn't.

What was keeping Naruto in bed that morning was one Uchiha Sasuke. It was painfully obvious, wasn't it? Naruto didn't want to have to face him again. After their last encounter... Naruto had come to a few realizations. One, was that Sasuke was a bastard. But he knew that one already. Two, he was a _controlling_ bastard. Naruto unconsciously rubbed his wrist after that. Always with the tugging. It was very annoying. Three, Sasuke had some seriously twisted tendencies. Like licking. And... hugging. Boys just didn't do those sorts of things with each other. Honestly. Naruto wasn't gay. He knew these things.

But most of all! Whenever Naruto was with Sasuke, he felt himself becoming... like a girl. Like a possession! Weak! Stupid! So easily manipulated. Just because Sasuke had this way of sucking on his neck that made Naruto's knees a little weak and his mind go a little hazy and...

No.

No. Naruto was not gay. There was no point in even entertaining the idea. Sasuke just didn't know what boundaries were. Naruto would teach them to him. They'd sit down and they'd have a discussion about what boundaries were, what personal space was, how not to touch him like that. It would be very productive.

Grinning, Naruto sat up in bed and looked around the room. Excellent. He was late for class.

* * *

It wasn't until second period that Naruto came flailing into the classroom halfway through the session. He was wet, his shirt wasn't tucked in, his tie wasn't even attempted as it hung loose around his shoulders, his jacket was askew, his pants wrinkled. He looked a mess, cheeks flushed as he tried to regain his breath from running. "I'm here!" He announced, standing up victoriously to peer at the classroom.

Sasuke snorted to himself. Well. At least he hadn't missed this little display. It would have been so unfortunate. Eyeing the blond boy, Sasuke tapped his pencil against his desk, waiting.

After being yelled at by their teacher, Naruto made his way towards the back. Where Sasuke was. Smirking, Sasuke leaned back in his chair and let his hand brush against Naruto's side as he walked past. No, he did not fail to notice the shudder that went through the boy.

Things were progressing, Sasuke could easily tell that. From the fidgeting and the looks Naruto kept sending his way. Sasuke never moved, never stirred. But he was pleased. Things were progressing very well. It hadn't been so challenging after all, had it? The reward was just as sweet.

When the lesson ended, Sasuke slowly stood up and turned to gaze down at Naruto. Who seemed to be still staring at the desk. "Hn," Sasuke said, crouching down so he was at eye level with Naruto. "You look like a lost puppy," Sasuke said with a smirk and reached out to grab Naruto by his hair and yanked him upwards out of his seat.

"Ow, ow, ow!" Naruto yelled, jerking awkwardly to make it less painful as possible. "What was that for, bastard?" Naruto grumbled when Sasuke had released him.

Not bothering to respond, Sasuke simply turned and walked out of the room. Naruto would follow.

Not two seconds later, a body slammed into his side. "Why don't you ever listen to me!" Naruto was pouting like a petulant child. But yet, he had managed to push Sasuke up against a wall. Well, mostly because Sasuke had been too amused to prevent him. Completely comfortable, Sasuke stared at Naruto, head slightly tilted. He wouldn't respond yet. The boy would work himself into a fervor.

"You're doing it again!" Naruto said, clearly irate now. "You're always doing this. Take take take. And what's with all that weird crap you do? I'm not.. gay," Naruto's voice dropped on the last word.

"You complain too much," Sasuke said simply, raising a hand to place it on Naruto's cheek. Leaning in, he moved so their lips were almost touching. "And of course you're not," Sasuke breathed out, responding to Naruto's constant outbursts of sexual affirmation. Like they were going to help him.

Slipping away from Naruto, Sasuke continued walking towards his next classroom. They were going to be late.

"Bastard!" Naruto called after him down the hall.

Pausing his motions, Sasuke waited for Naruto to catch up to him. The small punch to his shoulder had hardly any affect on him. "Naruto," Sasuke whispered lowly, letting his breath ghost over Naruto's ear. "Your uniform is on wrong," He finished, pulling away and began adjusting it for him.

The tie was to be expected, Sasuke had become accustomed to having to do it for the boy, but really. Was he not even able to tuck his own shirt in? As soon as Sasuke's hands reached to do so they were batted away.

"What are you doing, bastard?!" Naruto's voice was shaky.

"Helping."

"You're molesting me."

"Your shirt isn't tucked in."

"So I can do it myself!"

"So do it," Sasuke's gaze drifted away while Naruto attempted to fix himself up. It didn't matter to him either way. He was simply trying to be helpful. That is what... friends did. Right? Sasuke was certain of it. Not that Naruto was his friend. It was just that was what Naruto believed. Might as well keep up pretenses.

When Sasuke heard the struggling from the other boy, his eyes moved back towards Naruto. "Let me do it," Sasuke commanded, taking the ends of Naruto's tie, doing it up correctly for him. "Are you never going to learn?"

"It's difficult!" Naruto said. Definitely pouting. Had he always been this petulant? Sasuke found it mildly amusing.

* * *

Today had really done nothing for Naruto's sneaking suspicions. Nothing at all. Except maybe to confirm his worst fears.

Sasuke was gay. For him!

Naruto slammed his head into the lunch table. He'd run to the cafeteria, hoping to get his food and eat quick before anyone even showed up. Not that it worked that way, but he could have dreamed. Currently, he was surrounded by his friends. And Sasuke. Who was sitting abnormally close. And had a hand on his back. Like Naruto was his possession!

Wriggling awkwardly, Naruto shifted closer to Hinata on his left. Only to be miraculously pulled back into Sasuke's side. This was getting a little old. Sighing, Naruto let his head slam back down. He hadn't even gotten to eat. As soon as he sat down Sasuke had been there. And then came everyone else. So now Naruto was stuck.

"Are you ok-kay?" Hinata's voice cut through his internal woe.

Picking his head up, Naruto grinned at her. "I'm perfect," He announced, attempting to stand up. Only to be yanked back down again. Even closer this time.

Hinata gave him a weak smile. Every time her eyes raised upwards to touch upon Sasuke she blushed deeper and gazed intently at the table. Naruto couldn't blame her. He was a bastard.

Shifting so he could see the bastard better, Naruto glared at him. "What is it, idiot," Sasuke asked, turning his black eyes upon the boy.

"What are you doing here?" Naruto said bluntly.

"Eating lunch," Sasuke lifted his eyebrows at him.

"No you're not," Naruto pointed to the empty space in front of Sasuke. Who just smirked.

"I already ate."

"You're lying!" Naruto accused.

Leaning forward, Sasuke came closer to Naruto. "No, I'm not," He whispered, about to lick Naruto's neck again, he was sure of it, before Naruto fumbled away and fall backwards off the bench and onto the floor.

It was sort of an anticlimactic moment, really. Naruto jumped to his feet, rubbing his behind and glaring at Sasuke. That is, until he noticed everyone else staring at him. Kiba looked furious. Temari looked mildly amused. Shikamaru bored. Gaara impassive. Sakura was blushing. Hinata was staring at the table.

"What?" Naruto said, putting on a huge grin. Because he'd totally meant to do that.

"Something you want to share with the group?" Temari said, looking quite mischievous.

Naruto didn't even notice that his cheeks seemed to heat up. "Not really," Naruto said, sitting back down. At least Sasuke wasn't touching him this time. That was helpful.

"Uchiha," Kiba's voice broke across the table. It sounded mildly threatening. Naruto jerked his head up to gaze at his friend. What was he doing? Nothing, apparently, as he didn't say anything else after that. Glancing up at Sasuke, Naruto noted that he looked amused. It seemed a common trend for him today. Naruto had noticed, at least.

Promptly deciding to ignore Sasuke, Naruto began picking at his food. At least, he tried. But it would seem that Sasuke didn't want to leave him alone. A finger tracing across his neck made him shift awkwardly. Especially with the shooting pain that ran down his body. Along with.. with something else. Glancing at Sasuke, Naruto frowned and tried to look at his neck. There was that wound again. He'd have to go get the nurse to look at it. It always hurt when he touched it.

"Naruto," Gaara said from close by. Glancing behind him, Naruto was startled to see Gaara standing there. Very close. Did _no one_ know what personal space was? "Come with me," Gaara said, dragging Naruto out of his seat.

"But I'm not done with lunch," Naruto protested, grabbing onto the first thing to keep him place. Which happened to be Sasuke.

The boy glanced up, eyes narrowed. "If he doesn't want to go, Hunter, then release him," Sasuke said, disinterested in the situation. He turned his gaze back to the table. However, he had grabbed onto Naruto's arm all the same. Effectively holding him in place between the two boys.

Feeling like an idiot, Naruto looked between the two of them. "What do you want, Gaara?" Naruto asked, as Sasuke began subtly pulling him back towards him.

"Council business," Gaara said simply. Most everyone else at the table looked up in concern. Naruto didn't have a clue what that meant, but he was sure that Sasuke would save him from mysterious 'business' and let him eat lunch. Even if it meant the occasional groping... what was that when compared to the prospect of food?!

Except that as soon as Sasuke heard those words he had immediately released Naruto who went propelling towards Gaara. "Oof," Naruto grunted, righting himself.

"You're all trying to kill me," Naruto was sure of it. Huffing, he began storming out of the cafeteria. ...After grabbing most of the portable food off his tray so he could eat as they went.

When they were in the hallway, Naruto waited for Gaara. "What do you really want?" Naruto asked around the food in his mouth.

Gaara swung his impassive eyes on Naruto. "There's someone you should meet," Gaara said after a moment of consideration. After he spoke, Gaara began walking away immediately. Naruto could only follow. Because, really, this whole situation was getting a little out of hand.

When he turned a longing eye back on the cafeteria, Naruto was mildly surprised to see Sasuke standing there and watching him leave. He looked... angry. Naruto had never seen Sasuke look so angry. Sure, he always looked annoyed. Even amused sometimes. But never happy. And never angry. Just indifferent. It was unsettling. Naruto almost stumbled over his own feet. Facing the front again, Naruto felt those eyes burning into his back.

It was very unsettling. Naruto wanted to turn around and walk back to him. Something was wrong. And he wanted to know what.

"Naruto," Gaara said, cutting across his concern.

Sighing in defeat, Naruto hurried to catch up. "So, who are we going to see?" Naruto asked, trying his best to dismiss Sasuke from his mind. It was only distressing.

"The nurse."

The... what? "And what's that got to do with some council?" Naruto asked, feeling like there was something he was missing here.

Gaara didn't respond. Instead, he led the way through the halls until they stopped in front of a white door proclaiming the nurse's office. Opening the door, Gaara pushed Naruto through.

"Naruto," The nurse turned to look at him. "I've been expecting you for some time now."

* * *

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